The Insanity That is My Life

Oh, What a Wonderful World!

2011-09-12T03:22:00.006+01:00

This weekend I went to my cousin's wedding. In Canada. It was far, far, far too long a drive for much, much, much too short of a visit. But if I had to go twice as far for half the visit? I would do it without a second of hesitation. Shayna was 14 years old when she was a bridesmaid in my wedding. And this weekend I watched her walk down the aisle as a bride herself. My children danced and danced until almost 1:00 in the morning with cousins they had never met before and cousins they adore. I caught up with family I haven't seen in far too long. The timing was not good, the drive was not easy, but none of that matters. Family matters. They ground me. They remind me where I come from. They remind me what is important. They are truly the greatest gift I can give my children. They share stories of those I don't remember to keep them alive, they share stories about grandparents and aunt and uncles when they were younger that make us laugh until our sides hurt. When I am with them, it feels like nothing else in the world. They are a gift, and a blessing, and although I don't see them often enough, don't talk to them as much as I should, they are always with me. I carry them in my heart, every day. This weekend, I got to share that with my girls. And since I am not a selfish person, (well, not too selfish) I will share just a little with you.

My mom with my cousin, Eric: AKA: Last-Minute-Lambert!

Aunt Gloria: Sunglasses Thief or Stroke Victim?
Erin & Haley with cousins Sherry & Liz.
My beautiful cousin Shayna and her new husband J. with all our family.

A Girl has to eat.....

2010-11-09T00:05:00.003Z

We took the girls to Bobby Flay's in Atlantic City for dinner. Ira and Erin shared the TOWERING seafood extravaganza. I never saw Erin so happy at a meal before. It was insane!

Jack O Lantern Impersonation

2010-11-08T01:15:00.001Z

Halloween

2010-11-03T21:25:00.003Z

The cutest witch I ever saw and a medieval-gothic-princess-fangless-vampire (it is all about the make-up, truly)

Hope you had a Happy Halloween!

What's witih all the commercials?

2010-06-14T15:43:00.002+01:00

We took the kids to see The Karate Kid movie this weekend. It was my nephew's birthday, o we all got together and it was a party! Followed by Taco Bell in the food court, it was a grand event, I tell you. I smuggled in 16 boxes of candy from the $1 store, which if purchased there would have cost the equivalent of my monthly car payment... but I digress.

As the lights dim and the movie starts, there are of course.... commercials. Yes commercials. Not coming attractions, my friends, commercials. What's up with that? Don't we get enough of those at home on the TV? Apparently not, we need more in the movies. Because the $47 we just shelled out for tickets wasn't enough, we need to be subjected to this now.

After this word from our sponsor, we get coming attractions to future movies my kids JUST HAFTA SEE! at another $83 a pop for a family of 4, and the movie is on. It is go time. And it is only a half hour after the advertised start time. By now, everyone has to go to the bathroom, the popcorn is gone and the sugar rush from the candy has kicked in. Whatever.

So the next day we are in the car and we hear this from Haley in the back seat.

"Remember that commercial from the movie Erin? I work at Lowes and I'm here to help!" in her best deep manly voice.

So those commercials do work. Home Depot better get on it if they want my 6 year old's business!

Spin the bottle & Drinking Games

2010-03-05T18:18:00.006Z

Yes. This is what my children did at dinner last night.

It has been a very long time since i posted anything here, so I felt I needed something good to come back with. I thought that was an attention grabber.

We were at Friendly's having dinner and my sweet 6 & 9 year old girls were spinning a butter knife around in the middle of the table. This is how the game goes. And yes, not only did I have to play, but I though it was hysterical.

1. Whoever the knife points at, you have to kiss. If it was their sister, they kissed on the nose. If it was me, I got kissed on the cheek. We were in public.

2. Since there was just the 3 of us, the knife often ended up pointing at our food, drinks or strangers. If this happened, they had to take a drink of their soda.

This, my friends, is how my children managed to combine spin the bottle with a drinking game. How many years till we add boys?

A keg can't be that far behind....... Only time will tell.

Happy Turkey Day

2009-11-27T01:51:00.004Z

Today my husband and I hosted Thanksgiving dinner for 21 people. We surrounded ourselves and our children with friends, family, laughter and good food.

It was exhausting, hard work, and messy.

And for all of this, I am thankful.

At the end of the day

2009-11-24T02:14:00.003Z

I can't believe today is the day AFTER the Philadelphia Marathon. We have been gearing up to that event in my house for what seems like forever. And it is over now. My husband is going about his day like any other. Playing with the kids, solving the worries of his clients world, stopping at Shop Rite to pick up our Thanksgiving Turkey. Just another day in our family.

Let me tell you something though. Yesterday was AWESOME. I don't mean it was just cool. I mean it was a day, a moment filled with awe. I stood there on the actual finish line with my daughters. With friends and family. With strangers. We stood there for over an hour waiting for him to cross that line. Just a line drawn on the ground for the day, but so much more than that, truly. While we stood waiting we were honored to watch so many others run, walk, and even stumble over that line, and we cheered them on as if they were each our own. It was a remarkable moment.

My girls stood there, on the railing right at the finish line. They wiggled and squiggled their way in a little at a time until they were right there, then they hung on to their spot for dear life. And they waited.

They watched.

And they didn't complain once.

As soon as I told them I saw daddy coming, they started cheering and clapping as loudly as they could and it was the proudest moment as we watched Ira run across the finish line.

26.2 miles.

He did it.

And his 3 girls were there, yelling and screaming to see him do it.

Ira taught the girls and I something yesterday. He taught us that ice is good for you when something hurts. That good music and friends make the miles go quicker. He proved that sneakers only last so many miles before they need to be replaced. Most importantly, he showed us that if you set your mind to it, you can accomplish even the loftiest of goals.

Pat, Rob, Rob, Ira. Training and Running together.

Yeah, my husband is a marathon runner.

And that is hot.

Daddy is sooo in for it!

2009-11-13T15:15:00.002Z

Last night my husband came home to a rare treat. A nice hot meal ready for the family. He deserved it.

"I woke up to something quite distrubing this morning" he tells me.

"Yeah? What?"

"My 9 year old daughter standing on the end of my bed dancing around in a bra and underwear."

Muahahahahahahahaha! That is so full of AWESOME!

My kid is great. Keep that daddy jumping, honey. He has no idea what the years ahead hold for him.

Does This Make Me a Bad Mother?

2009-11-09T17:55:00.003Z

So many times I have to wonder.

How about this. Last night I was awoken around 12:30 to the sound of my daughter vomiting. I hear Ira in the bathroom with her. She is asking him if he is mad that she woke him up and he is talking to her and all. I pretend to still be asleep and ignore the entire situation.

I want no part in THAT. Sick puking kid? Daddy can handle it.

We went on a 3 day cruise this past weekend. It was wonderful. Travel was easy, the kids behaved, weather was fabulous. This morning a coworker asked me what the best part was? Not time spent with kids, not watching them play and swim and all that. No

Easy, I visited the scrapbook store in the Bahamas!

Does all this make me a bad mother? Naaaahhhh. If I had tied the girls to a silver hot air balloon to ride home, then I would be in the running perhaps!

Kids say the darndest things

2009-10-23T02:22:00.004+01:00

Neither Ira nor I are very political. I will say that 1. when it comes down to the issue I tend to lean more towards the Democratic side of the line and he would be more towards the Republican line but that 2. we both agree that it is more important to vote for the candidate than the political party they represent.

This being said, we came home about a week ago and there was a campaign sign in our front yard for the democratic candidates running for town council in Cherry Hill. Neither of us is exactly sure how this happened; we probably answered a call from the campaign in the middle of a million other things and then agreed to it without realizing. We prefer NOT to have any political propaganda displayed on our property, regardless of the party it represents.

Anyhow, being too lazy to walk to the curb and remove it, there it stays.

Later that week, one of Ira's clients stopped by. He is looking to buy a home and Ira had mentioned some properties for sale near us. Since it was dark the man was unable to find them, so Ira was going to go for a ride to point them out and Erin decided to go with them. When they returned home, the client asked Ira why he had a democratic sign in the front yard? Not knowing th eclient's political affiliation, and not wnating to step on any toes, thi being a rather big client, he paused for a minute before answering.....

From the back seat, Erin pipes in, "Aren't Democrats the ones that want to give away all the money?"

You gotta love kids.

Tap Dancing Dogs, Children Who Wonnnn't Wear Clothes, Cooking for the United Nations.

2009-10-19T17:38:00.011+01:00

You can tell when it is dinner time in my house. Things are busy in the kitchen (because unwrapping all those take out containers take many people and utensils) and we all gather around to lend a hand. The kitchen is full of good smells and we are generally all together talking, laughing and just being a general picture of family normality.

Rufus can tell too. This is when he starts dancing around the kitchen. But because he has these dog nails and we have a tile floor, his excitement is audible. It sounds like he is tap dancing. If we leave food on the counter and we sit down to eat, all you hear is the tap-tap-tap-tap of his nails as he dances around the counter waiting for us to feed him.
We have renamed him Rufus-B0-Jangles.

Erin, as usual, will not wear any clothes that are constraining, itching, touch her, or just in general that we like and think she should. On Saturday we needed to go to services at TBS and it was cold and rainy. She puts on a pair of summer, although dressy, capri pants. No. She tries warm and inappropriate sweats. No again. I force her to wear a pair of corduroy pants she has had close to a year that she begged us to buy. They are pink. They sparkle. They are super soft.

This is followed by 15 minutes of her walking around like she just got off a horse because when she walks with her legs together the cords make noise. They are uncomfortable. She hates them. She yells and whines THE PANTS AND IF YOU SAY ONE MORE THING YOU ARE SPENDING THE REST OF THE DAY IN YOUR ROOM WHEN WE GET HOME!" Cause I am all mother of the year like that.

So she wears the pants. And looks grumpy. Yet fashionably adorable.

When we get home I send her up to change.

"No mommy, I'm ok"
"Why don't you want to change?"
"Cuz these are comfy."
"But I thought you hated them?"
"Yeah, but you know I always do that"
Grrrrrrr.
is up with that?

Thanksgiving is in just 2 days. I am having 21 people for dinner this year. Here is the list.....You figure it out.

My parents and inlaws. Ok, makes sense.

Sister-in-law and her family. Yup sounds good.

My 2 cousins from NY. Ok, that is pretty cool. Reconnecting family ties and all that.

My Aunt from Canada. Ok... she already had a Canadian Thanksgiving, but still, it is a nice tradition.

Her son. huh? I found out about him coming on other cousins facebook page. for realz.

My sister. Her 3 kids.

Yup. That's cool.
Her ex-husband.

Ok, that is just showing we are a modern family.

His room mate.

Just call me the United Nations, people. Give me any hungry person. I will feed them turkey.
Pass the large bottle of wine and bring me some mashed potatoes.

The Time Has Come

2009-08-13T15:20:00.003+01:00

...for my first born to grow up. Yes. It has happened.

Last night Erin went to see her friend in the camp play. I was dropping her off at the show and she was going to meet her friend's mom in the lobby to see the camp prodution of Willy Wonka. She and Zoe have been friends since they were 2 years old and Erin was so excited to "support my friend and see her perform!" It was just terribly sweet how excited she was for Zoe.

After dinner, she got dressed and ready. Just this week Erin has suddenly become interested in how she looks, how her clothes match, and all about her "fashion" on a regular basis. Hmm? So we get in the car, and I drive her to the JCC. I pull up in front and give her the cell phone. The directions are that Zoe's mom is meeting her in the lobby and she should call me when she sees her. I will wait right out front. (Erin has gone to the JCC for 5 years of preschool through kindergarten and is very comfortable there, so I didn't need to walk her in.) I say to her, "Ok, have fun! Give me a kiss."

She looks at me.

"No. not here. Someone might see me!"

I didn't want to embarrass her. I know better than to make a big deal. But in that one second, it just killed me.

"Ok, high five." That was apparently acceptable.

And out of the car she went and running up the walk way. She saw another camp friend and they went in the building together laughing and talking about who knows what.

Ok, I teach middle school. 6th, 7th and 8th graders. I know what 12-14 year olds are like. But Erin is only 8. Ok, almost 9. Still.... She is not any where close to being a teenager. Why does she have to be so grown up?

I sat in the car waiting for her call. Sure enough, in less than 2 minutes she called and told me she found Zoe's mom and they were going in to sit down. She was turning her phone off for the show but she would call me after it was over and they were on the way home.

"Have fun, love you honey."

"Thanks, mommy"

Well. She still called me mommy. That's something, right?

The REAL reason I have dogs.

2009-08-10T02:12:00.002+01:00

Tonight I was tucking in Haley and tod her she had to sleep in her own bed. Al night. She has been sneaking in to snuggle me every night for I don't know how ong and I just have not slept we lately. Enough is enough.

She asked me if I ever have bad dreams. I tod her I don't because I always have Rufus in bed and he keeps the bad dreams away.

This is how I tucked her in and left her tonight.

Hopefully he stays until morning.

The Happiest Place on Earth

2009-08-06T20:57:00.002+01:00

That is what they say about Disney... but I don't agree. It is hotter than hades, more crowded than the discount purse bin at Macy's on Black Friday, and full of Brazilian Tour Groups trying to out chant and basically annoy the crap out of you. The lines are out of control, the sun is brutal and a can of soda costs $4.50.

Woo Hoo, thrills and spills, folks.

But nothing is as good as old fashioned family time, so we sucked it up (Haley and I, Ira, Erin and Samantha seemed to enjoy all the crap I mentioned above) and we followed our family motto. "It's not a catastrophe. It's an adventure!" When it rained, we wore ponchos and when it was hot, we found shade. Erin is a true thrill seeker. The crazier and faster and higher a ride was, the more she was into it. Tower of Terror? Rockin' Roller Coaster? Splash Mountain? Bring it on! Haley? She went on It's a Small World. Three times. In a row. With mommy.

Did I mention how much I love Disney?

But the kids had a blast doing the things they loved and Ira loved making us crazy getting up to go! go! go! It was great to get to the cruise on Thursday and get some relaxing in.

There are about 250 pictures in the album I added here. If you click to the Picasa page, you can see the rest (if you are bored and want to put yourself to sleep or a coma or something?) there. you can also download them right from Picasa to your own computer (To the grandparents, and Samantha) if you want.

So my words of wisdom? Don't go to Disney in the summer. I have fulfilled my parental obligation to bring my children to see the mouse, so I can say with much certainty that I am NEVER. Going. to Disney. Again.

At least not in the summer.

For a few years at least.

Example #327 on how my husband and I don't. ever. talk.

2009-06-18T02:25:00.004+01:00

Tonight we had the usual craziness. One child had a half day at school. Arrange mom-mom to get her off the bus, me run to pick her up after I am done at work, get 2nd child, home for quick snack and half hour to play in which they go out front to color on new posters and somehow end up destroying plants that are waiting to be re-planted tomorrow by landscaper. (Who knew I had to watch them like a hawk every second at this age?) Get the girls changed into leotards, grab an apple, and off to The Gymnastics Show. Have to get there at least 6 hours early for 5:30 show if you want seats. Ok, so Aubree gave me a seat and Ira stole a seat from Aaron's son.... Whatever. Sit through like an hour and a half of ~~torturous~~ adorable gymnastics routines. Dinner, home, run around the driveway throwing mints from the dinner at each other, in for baths, you know, normal crazy family stuff.

So while the girls are in the tub, Ira and I are in Haley's room. We are doing whatever, and he tackles me and throws me on her bed. Typical Ira stuff. We are laying there talking and he says, "So, My intern, Adam....."

Huh?

The puzzled look on my face must have been a dead give away because he says, "I told you about my intern, right?"

"Well, no, you didn't actually. How long have you had this intern?"

Now we re completely grinning at each other. So, he now has an intern, and he has totally not mentioned it to AT ALL!

"Three weeks, but we so had this conversation. I told you ALL about it!" Grinning ear to ear.

"No! You DID NOT!" Grinning even more.

At this point we are both well aware that I will SO be blogging about this tonight.

"Yes I did. My mom ran into his mom when she was visiting your mom at the hospital I think? She told her about me and he needed an intern position for school so she told her to have him call me. They knew each other from like 20 years ago when she went to the Dr. that my mom used to work for or something like that."

(side not: I just re-read that, and even having been a part of the conversation, it makes no sense to me, so don't try to make sense out of it. That is just how my man and I roll.)

Ok, now, no way in God's Green Earth did we have this conversation. Ever. But that's ok. This is just the way we operate. I'm good with it. We have other things to talk about. Like Lima Beans and leotards and princesses and pom-poms..... Yeah, our life is pretty full.

You would think taking on an intern that his mom sent him because she knew his mom 20 years ago and ran into her at the hospital visiting my mom would be one of those Small-world-coincidences that kind of comes up over dinner or something. But no. You would think wrong.

And my family continues to tell him stuff like, "Hey, your father is having surgery" or "Your grandmother died" or even "Dinner on Sunday s going to be at your sister's house. We are celebrating mom and dad's something-tieth anniversary." and they think he is going to pass the news on to me. I swear, each of these are things that his family has told him expecting him to tell me. INCLUDING HIS GRANDMOTHER HAS DIED!

Yeah. No. He isn't.

And by the way, to my mother-in-law that reads this blog?

Yeah, he got a call from your friend's son and gave him and internship. As of today, Adam has been working for Ira for about 3 weeks now, 3 days a week.

And he has not mentioned it to you yet.

Although he will swear he has had this conversation with you.

He HAS NOT!

Don't let him play you.

It isn't just me he holds out information on.

Share the love, family. Share the love.

I think my children are adopted.

2009-06-03T01:13:00.009+01:00

They can't possibly be mine. Today is proof positive.

I will start with Haley. She is the strongest, thinnest little thing you can imagine. The kid has an actual six pack stomach. I kid you not. You can look at her belly and see defined abdominal muscles. It is disgusting. She must be adopted. Or an alien. She does this cheer leading and gymnastics thing. And she is good. Her coaches tell me how strong she is. All. The. Time. Oh, and did I mention she runs? Just for fun? Fast? Well she does.

Next, comes Erin. She brought home this paper a few weeks ago, It was about a triathlon they are holding. A kids triathlon. At the JCC. And she wants to do it. Ok..... So she has to run a half mile, bike a half mile, and swim 50 50 yards. She has been training like mad. She comes home from school and gets on her bike to ride around the block (the horseshoe is .6 of a mile if she does 2 laps) and some days she grabs Izzy and takes her for a run. She has the biking and running down. She is working on the swimming this week. She decided to do this all by herself. Yesterday, when she was running, one of the kids in the neighborhood was shooting baskets out in his driveway. Erin finished her loop and then went over to his house to shoot hoops for a while. We were watching, and she did a pretty good job. I didn't think little white Jewish girls could shoot baskets?

And now... Now this....

I am out numbered. I am surrounded by exercise fanatics.

You know the phrase, "If you can't beat them, join them"?

Yeah, I am stronger than that phrase.

In House Artist

2009-05-30T03:19:00.003+01:00

This week we attended Erin's Art Show at school. These are 5 of her pieces that were displayed around the school that she worked on this year in 2nd grade. There were also 3-D Arts on display, including a beaded necklace made with clay beads where she made the actual beads, but that didn't photograph so well. The talent of students in her school was incredible!

Enjoy my own little talented girl and her creative works....
1) Butterfly
2) Forrest
3) Horses
4) Chinese Dragon
5) Leaves

Summer Challenge

2009-05-28T16:31:00.004+01:00

My two friends and I, Aubree and Jing Jing, have challenged ourselves. Ok, I started it and they are weak and cave to peer pressure, but regardless, we are doing this together! We are going to complete 100 scrapbook pages between Memorial Day and Labor Day weekends. I won't mention that we are each counting some work we did as early as Wednesday or Thursday before Memorial Day weekend, it was a looong weekend, ok? It is the general time frame we are going for. It is fun to egg each other on, watch the work we each create and have a little friendly competition. Especially with creative ladies like these.

So, here are the first 8 pages I managed to get done last weekend. I have 3 more finished, just not photographed and downloaded yet. I think if we keep each other motivated, 100 pages won't be that hard? Especially if you have seen the stash of supplies we have stock piled. We tend to encourage shopping as well....

Update: Seeking Counselor.

2009-05-28T14:40:00.004+01:00

So, as predicted, Erin arrived home from school yesterday and as soon as she found out that Ira .... shall we say "Took care of the bird" she was PISSED! I was talking to him on the phone and she started yelling at him and was angry and he got the Very Mad Face and everything. Do I know my kids or what. And to think, she looks this sweet?

Haley, on the other hand, was rather matter-of-fact about the entire thing. Blase' if you will. She was proud of the fact that she did not tell anyone at school as daddy made her promise not to. Weekend Mermaid, School Day ELmer Fudd (I thought I thaw A Birdy? I did, I did!).

Ira told me that of everyone he spoke to over the course of the day told him the man was just not right. In his defense? If we lived in some parts of the country, the kids would have not only had their own real guns by now, he would have taken them turkey hunting already and taught them how to clean their own kill.

Just saying.
Maybe we should move to the Great Smoky Mountains. Or West Virginia.
Robins is the best we can do in Cherry Hill.

Years. Of. Therapy.

2009-05-27T16:40:00.004+01:00

Strangely, this time I am not talking about me. My children. They will most likely need years of therapy. You see, their father is insane. He has an obsession. With birds. And killing them. Not all birds, just the 3 that have nested in my back porch. Where they proceed to shit all over the cushions and table and deck and everything. It is gross, dirty, disgusting and unsanitary. We eat there. The kids and dogs walk out there and then come in the. We have removed the nest, almost daily, just to have it rebuilt over night. The damn robin even laid her eggs on the wood beam with no nest!

So the birds have to go.

The other night, we were on the porch, and one of the cushions was literally PILED with bird poop. Did I mention this was the day after I had spent hours out int eh sun scrubbing the cushions with soap and water and a scrub brush to put them out for the season? No? well, it was. And this cushion had little piles of bird poop. All. Over. It. Gross. There were these two sparrow like birds. Asleep on the wire over head. Ira picked up a small bottle of Gatorade someone left on the porch. He threw it. Would you believe he hit the sleeping bird? Yeah, I wouldn't have either. Until he held up a headless bird at the kitchen window.

Yup. Headless.

Now, here is the part where my kids need therapy. The next morning? Erin asked if he kept the bird so she could see it. Serious. She was mad he didn't wake her up to see it. (He asked, I wouldn't let him, by the way)

Next weekend, birds (well, 2 out of the 3) are still around. Things. Get. Serious. Ira goes to the hunting store and buys an automatic bee bee gun. Thing shoots like 100 pellets in a nano-second.

Bird doesn't stand a chance.

Kids are running in the house all weekend yelling, "Daddy! Get your gun! The birds are her! You gotta kill them!"

Something is wrong with this. Normal children do not behave this way.

This morning I get a text message from Ira.

The Robin is dead.

I call him on my break. He said he saw the Robin and he grabbed the gun (he keeps the pellets out of it and the CO2 canister out of it all in different places, no way the kids can get to it) and puts it together and sits on the porch. There is dirt and bird crap every place. The thing built its nest. Again. For the 478th time.

He sits an waits. The robin hops down from his nest. Mocking my husband. He hops across the concrete patio and .... DT-DT-DT-DT-DT-DT-DT-DT-DT-DT-DT-DT-DT-DT! His accuracy may not be true, but with an automatic weapon, just a sweep of the hand and the bird is gone.

Ira goes inside to get something to clean up the remains. He comes out and there is Haley. Kicking the bird with her shoe.

"I just wanted to see if it was still moving!"

When did she get so grown up?

2009-05-20T15:22:00.003+01:00

Monday night was Haley's cheerleading show. Before that, I took the girls to dinner to meet two of Haley's friends and their moms at a pizza place. Ira met us there. From there, we went right to the show, where Haley and her cheerleading class did an OUTSTANDING job. They performed at the annual meeting for the JCC and were a fabulous success. I felt sorry for whoever had to talk after them. Just adorable.

As we left the JCC, Haley realized she lost her jacket. We knew she didn't bring it into the JCC so she must have left it at dinner. Back to the pizza place we went.... kids!

When we pulled into the parking lot, Erin said she would run in.

Really?

Ira and I sat and watched her go in the door. Now, the place has all glass windows, so we could see her and watch what she did. This is a pizza place I have been going to since I was, what, 14 I think? She went to the table where we sat and looked under all the benches. No jacket.

What would she do?

We watched.

She walked up to the counter.

She waited her turn.

We saw her talking to the very big, more than a little gruff and loud Italian-pizza-guy-behind-the-counter-named-Joey (Imagine that?) We saw Joey look around. We saw Joey hand Erin something. We saw Erin smile, say thank you and come skipping out the door with her sister's jacket. Joey smiled at us and waved over his head as she skipped away. He's a dad too. I know.

We were shocked.

She is 8 years old? How is she grown up enough to have the confidence to walk into a restaurant, look for the jacket, ask at the counter that is very over her head, and come skipping out? She didn't know we could see her the whole way?

When Erin got in the car, she was laughing. She told us that is was funny because at first she didn't see the jacket. It was inside out and the inside is white and it was with some white towels so she didn't even know it was there, even though the jacket is pink. The man had to look a few times and then he laughed when he found it. She was so proud of herself.

Erin has always been so independent. Always so willing to do things on her own. It shouldn't surprise me. She is my adventurous child. The one willing to do things.

This moment was just one of those that hit me. She really isn't a little kid any more. My little girl is growing up.

How did that happen?

All Grown Up

2009-05-14T03:18:00.002+01:00

No posts for a month, then two in a day. Its a Festivus Miracle!

This deserved being shared right away. Haley had some remarkable news for me when I picked her up today from school. She couldn't wait to show me as soon as we got home. I won't spoil the surprise, I will let her show you.

{It's 3 tissue slide show, if you ask me.}

Please Excuse My Absence.

2009-05-13T16:27:00.003+01:00

"Mommy! You are ALWAYS on your computer! Get off your computer and spend TIME WITH YOUR CHILDREN!"

This is what Haley said to me one day after school way back in April. Kind of hit me pretty hard. We had gotten in to this routine, you see. We came home, unpacked bags, checked mail, made snacks... then I got on the computer and the kids played. We were in the same room, but we were not together, I suppose.

And it took a 5 year old to make me realize it.

So I have not blogged for about a month.
I am going to try again. Hopefully I can do better. It is almost summer, so I will have all the time I need during the day to read the gazillion blogs I love and not neglect my children :o) I hope....

Cooking for 462 people... or 24. Feels the same.

2009-04-12T19:03:00.013+01:00

I have the biggest house in the family. A big family. A very extended family. SO when there is a holiday, it is at my house. Of course, a holiday, or just a random Sunday in the summer, is any reason for us to gather. We no not discriminate. If someone in my family has met you once, and you are not busy on such an occasion, you are invited.

And I will feed you.

This is how it turns out that I was cooking for 247 people for Passover Dinner on Saturday. No, Passover was not Saturday, but my family decided the calendar was not convenient. Niece in college, people working, kids have school, yadda-yadda-yadda... we made it Saturday night.

To keep my kids busy while I cooked, for 2 days, we colored "Passover" Eggs. Not exactly kosher, but effective.

Like the little faces and hats? I swear, the one with the black hat is a little Hasidic Jew-Egg. The kids kept yelling "Merry Eggs-mas"! It was hysterical.

This is what 462 people looks like in my dining room plus 2 more tables added on extending into my living room. You can't even see the people all the way in the back. I am not that good of a photographer and I didn't have the super zoom long distance lens to get people 87 yards away.

We celebrated Ira's Rachael's and Lindsay's birthdays. With kosher-for-passover cakes. They were.... interesting. But it's the thought that counts, right?

Here is the entire crew on the couch, thanks to the self-timer function!

And this is what my kitchen looked like when everyone left. You can't see the dishwasher is full or the pile of dirty towels on the floor.

The Curious Incident About the 5 Year Old and The Dogs in the Middle of the Night.

2009-04-09T16:23:00.002+01:00

The other night I went to bed, by myself. Not unusual. Ira was working, and the dogs were each in bed with one of the girls.

I woke up at 3:30 a.m. and I was not alone. I had the Hounds of Hell all curled up in bed with me.

And Haley sitting on me.

Daddy, still at work.

"Mommy. I need help."

"Wuz-a-matter-its-the-middle-of-the-night?" {whining invloved from mommy, not child here}

"It's cold, and the damn dogs are hogging all the blankets."

"Oh."

mommy rolls dog over, pulls out some quilt and tucks child in.

"That better?"

"Yes, thank you. mommy"

Always polite, even at three a.m.

Example # 648 of how we screw up as parents.

2009-04-03T13:11:00.002+01:00

My oldest daughter, Erin, is a slob. She doesn't put away anything. She drops things on the floor where she is and there they stay.

My daughter, Haley, is the anti-Erin. She will stop what she is doing to go upstairs and put her sneakers away. No one taught her this. I swear. No. Wire. Coat hangers. Involved.

The girls each have their own bedroom. Without me telling which belongs to which girl, you could figure it out from the above statement.

The cleaning lady left my house at 4:00 on Monday. At 8:30 as we tucked the girls in to bed, Erin's room was a disaster. Clothes on the floor, papers all over her desk, stuffed animals and blankets EVERY WHERE. We had not even been home much of the night.

Haley's Room? Pristine.

It is who they are.

As my husband tucked Haley in to bed, he told her, "Don't ever turn into your sister. She's a mess."

To which Haley replied"

"That's because mommy screwed up with her. I won't ever be like that."

So I suppose I have over emphasized the lesson of "Learn from your mistakes" to my children a little too much, ya think?

My First Blind Date. Ever.

2009-04-01T18:31:00.005+01:00

I am 36 years old. My husband and I will be married 15 years this summer. We dated 5 years before that. (I will pause now for you to get some paper and pencil, or click on your computer's calculator function... go ahead, you can do it.... Got your math done now?)

Now that you have figured out we have been together since I was 16 and in high school together..... Last night was my first blind-date, so to speak. Ever!

Her name was Jing Jing. And no, she is not a Panda Bear.

My friend Aubree and I belong to this scrapbook kit-of-the-month club and talk on the on-line bulletin boards. {Ok, we are dorks. We are ok with that.} We met Jing Jing there about 2 years ago. We have chatted with her and emailed ever since. She is this completely awesome scrapbooker and so funny and we just love her. She seems like the kind of person you could just be great friends with... if she didn't live in Minnesota.

Turns out she was going to be in Philadelphia for a work conference this week. So we arranged to meet her for dinner.

It was a threesome-blind date. Ooh-la-la!

Here was the plan. We would meet in the lobby of her hotel, and go someplace for dinner. Well, I knew she was a small Chinese woman with short hair. She teased me in emails that she would be the one waving a paper trimmer around.

My husband questions if she was an ax murderer. No, silly, then she would have said she would be waving an AX around, not a paper trimmer! Men!

So, I search the hotel for a friendly little Chinese lady with short hair, and sneakers (from a picture she posted of her travels of the city earlier in the day). I was literally stalking every Asian woman with short hair in the hotel lobby checking out their shoes. I am surprised security didn't toss me out? I finally found her.

She is AWESOME! She is FUNNY! She is a bundle of energy and she doesn't even drink coffee! She can eat her weight worth of Italian food! She can not operate a cell phone and doesn't do Facebook or Twitter, and she is an IT person? She could have been my new BFF right up to the no texting thing. I must be in communications with my peeps at all times. Ask Aubree. We jam each others in boxes on a daily basis. Jing Jing, we will work on you. Come to the dark side!

How cool is it that this obsessive hobby of mine brought me yet another wonderful new friend?

Aubree and I had such a great time. We took Jing Jing to Magiano's for dinner, across from the hotel. They serve huge piles of food (HOLY BUCKETS!) and we ate until we could hardly walk. And we talked. And we laughed. And laughed. And laughed. Like only scrappers can do.

We stepped outside to take a picture {3 scrapbookers, together. DUH! You had to know that was coming!} So I stood in place while Aubree and Jing Jing set up their cameras. When three unsuspecting men walked by wearing the conference badges from the same conference Jing Jing was attending, she asked if they would mid helping us with a few pictures.

Absolutely! They say. The guys all proceed to huddle around me, put their arms around me, the one guy even kissed me on the side of the head! I am thinking they had hit the bar pretty hard at the cocktail reception..... So, Aubree and Jing Jing did what scrappers do best. They took pictures.

I don't know how we didn't pee our pants it was so funny!

So we get the guys to be serious, give them our cameras and get all set up. They say, "One, Two, Three.." and then run. Away. With our camera. LAUGHING!

We completely lost it then.

So, they come back, we try again, and they finally take a picture. Being oh so careful to capture the moment, we ask them to take another, just in case.

The one guy turns the camera around and takes his own picture!

Listen, buddy, we have you on film, and we know what conference you are attending.

We. Will. Find you.

Anyway, photo ops aside, it was just awesome. Like spending the night with a long lost friend you didn't even know you had.

But now, I do.

***I was not able to post the pictures because AUBREE AND JING JING DID NOT SEND THEM TO ME!

I no longer eat Lima Beans.

2009-03-30T19:47:00.003+01:00

Yesterday was a fabulous warm sunny spring day. I had my sister's kids for the day while she was moving (I got the easy part of that deal!) so I sent them all outside to play. My oldest came in and was all excited, "Mommy! You have to come outside and see the Lima Beans we found!" It is spring, so I figured it was some kind of seed or pod or whatever. The kids are always finding things like that in the yard. Plus, we had construction last fall, and the yard is a disaster, so there is all kinds of dirt and every thing is all torn up.

Well, I told her to get a cup or bowl or something. I would see it in a little bit, but I know daddy would LOVE to see what they found when he got home from work! I had an 8, 6, 5, and 3 year old all happily entertained. For hours. With Lima Beans. Who was I to question my good fortune?

Around 5:15 or so, Hubby gets home. He comes stomping in the house and yells, "Wheres the damn broom!"

???

"Hi, honey, nice to see you too? The broom is where it always is. Why?"

"The kids dug up a bowl full of TERMITES and left them in a pile of dirt in the middle of the garage."

Lima Beans? Yeah, kids? Lima Beans don't move.

Maybe next time they say they found something they are that excited over, mommy should get up off her lazy ass and go take a peek, huh?

Probably.

But I doubt it.

It is so much more fun to save it for daddy.

and I really don't like bugs.

Why do we even bother?

2009-03-27T21:57:00.002Z

We built this amazing playroom in the basement. There is an area for toys with huge shelves filled with every birthday and holiday gift they ever opened. A big rug, book shelves, more space for toys, a big play table... the other half has an art table, with plenty of organizers for art supplies, an easel, a sink. Next to that there is a couch with a TV and some pillows & blankets and stuffed animals. It is just PERFECT! I would have loved a place like this as a kid!

We have invested $874, 296 in the back yard. There is a ginormous swing set. With the swings the girls picked and a monkey-bar attachment. The top has a play house, and a rock wall, and a picnic table underneath. Daddy even built the world's most adorable cottage in the yard, put in carpet and painted the walls pink. They have cushions out there, doll house, toys, you name it.

They have more stuff in their rooms. They have a desk full of puzzles and games and art supplies in the family office. Computers with stuff they adore bookmarked as favorites, you name it. I have the world's most entirely spoiled kids on the planet. They have everything a child could possible want and a sister they (most of the time) like to play with to share it all with.

Then why do they spend the majority of their time sitting on the cold, hard concrete of the driveway playing with sidewalk chalk or digging in the dirt in the front yard looking for worms?

I have to admit, though, nothing makes me smile like pulling up to the house and seeing the masterpiece they have created.

Rites of Passage

2009-03-23T18:20:00.003Z

This weekend I celebrated 3 Rites of Passage.

1) I drove my kids all over the world to different places, activities, picking up something for school, getting new shoes, this one to gymnastics, Hebrew school for that one, dog food, you name it. I am officialy a suburban mom. Hear. Me. Whine. With a coffee. A LOT of coffee.

2) I attended the Bar Mitvah of my dear friends, Ron and Ivy's son. David, I love you. You were wonderful. I especially loved the reception where you told your brother you could only love him more "If his name was Melve so it rhymed with Twelve" so he could come and light the candle with you. Who had the bright idea to give that kid a microphone?

3)My niece Samantha's Quinceanera. Yes, it is a traditional Hispanic celebration of a girl's 15th birthday and becoming a woman. No, we are not traditional, nor are we hispanic. We had a had a party at my house, played Wii and had ice cream cake. and there was Taco dip. And she turned 15. So close enough.

My niece from college, Rachael, was home, so that made it even specialer. And she isn't Hispanic either. But my Gay-Ex-Brother-In-Law-Who-Buys-Rasberry-Balsamic-Vinager-From-The-Christmas-Tree-Store (Cause dude, they don't just sell Christmas Trees!)is Italian, so that is close. As close as Taco dip....and his 95 year old Italian father who kept making sexual inuendos on all the ladies were there. That is is kind of close to Latino, isn't it?

This is my sister, my niece, and myself. You can see how exactly "Non-Latina" we are. Well, we can dance, so maybe we have a little in us.

All were awesome and are just what weekends are about. Not one minute of my weekend could have been better, unless my hubby had been around to share more of it with me.

3 more Sundays until tax season is over.

Driving in NJ

2009-03-20T12:55:00.017Z

From Sarah, of If I Could Do Something Else I Would
Seriously, there are only two things needed to drive
effectively in NJ: A horn and a middle finger.
Everything else is superfluous, including knowing where you
are going.
For those of you who live in Jersey or have lived there,
these things may come as no surprise. For those who
haven't travelled there before
Beware, Be Prepared and Be Afraid.... Be Very Afraid.

1. You must first learn to pronounce the city name, it is
Nork - rhymes with Fork, not New-ark. Also, Trenton is not
pronounced Tren-ton, it is Tren-tin.

2. The morning rush hour is from 5 AM to NOON. The evening
rush hour is from NOON to 7 PM. Friday's rush hour
starts on Thursday morning.

3. The minimum acceptable speed on the turnpike is 85 mph.
On the parkway it's 105 or 110. Anything less is considered "Sissy." (Just ask the Governor of NJ)

4. Forget the traffic rules you learned elsewhere. Jersey
has its own version of traffic rules. For example,
cars/trucks with the loudest muffler go first at a four-way
stop; the trucks with the biggest tires go second;
However, in Monmouth and Burlington counties, SUV-driving,
cell phone-talking moms ALWAYS have the right of way. I like
that one!

5. If you actually stop at a yellow light, you will be rear
ended, cussed out, and possibly shot. (I have witnessed this one,
minus the shooting.)

6. Never honk at anyone. EVER ! Seriously. It's
another offense that can get you shot.

7. Road construction is permanent and continuous in all of
Jersey. Detour barrels are moved around for your
entertainment pleasure during the middle of the night to
make the next day's driving a bit more exciting.

8. Watch carefully for road hazards such as drunks, skunks,
dogs, cats, barrels, cones, Celebes, rubber-neckers, shredded
tires, cell-phoners, deer and other road kill, and the
Homeless feeding on any of these items.

9. MapQuest does NOT work here -- none of the roads are
where they say they are or go where they say they do and all
the Turnpike EZ Pass lanes are moved each night once again
to make your ride more exciting.

10.. If someone actually has their Turn Signal ON, wave them
to the shoulder immediately to let them know it has been
"accidentally activated."

11. If you are in the left lane and only driving 70 in a
55-65mph zone, you are considered a road hazard and will
be "flipped off" accordingly. If you return the
flip, you'll be shot.

12. Do not try to estimate travel time -- just leave Monday
afternoon for Tuesday appointments, by noon Thursday for
Friday appointments, and right after church on Sunday for
anything on Monday morning.

Lastly, there is one driving rule that I would like today,
as witnessed this morning. The first day of spring. There
were snow flurries in the sky. The road was just barely
wet. Drive as though there is 47 inches of snow on
the ground.

Who do you think you are listening to?

2009-03-19T20:18:00.005Z

Sitting with another mom, talking about our kids. Moms do that. She was telling me how much her son likes to rock out to one of those Disney movie sound tracks: Camp Rock, High School Musical or one of them, I don't even remember. We were laughing about they way the kids make up or misinterpret the words from songs, just how funny it is (Erin thought Carrie Underwood's Before He Cheats on Me was "Before He Eats Cheese on Me" HA!)

Then I mention Haley and Erin rocking out to Gwen Stefani.

She gets this look of disgust on her face. Like I just admitted I peddle my kids on the Internet as child porn.

"I don't allow my children to listen to artists like that. We stay with things like Kidz Bop"

Um, Hello, whose songs do you think they are on Kidz Bop?

Kidz Bop 13 Party Like a Rockstar, anyone?

Lost & Found... exactly where it SHOULDN'T BE!

2009-03-18T20:58:00.002Z

I am working on this craft project that won't end. and I want it to. The fact that I can't finish it because I keep coming up with these ridiculously labor intensive multi-step pieces that need to dry for 148 hours between each step is a completely different story.

But I digress.

Around the continent, as my husband would say.

I came home today to sneak in an hour before the kids got home on this project.

I went to look for my silver metallic pen that writes on any surface.

I went through 17 drawers, 3 baskets, my school bag, a box of crap and looked in the back yard to see if maybe the dogs got it.

It was on the kids desk.

I needed my brayer (like an ink roller). It wasn't in the drawer where it should be. Or any other logical location.

Kids desk?

Yup.

What about my specific color fine point blue paint pen?

Fine tip scissors?

Hole punch?

Heat gun, for God's sake?

All on the kids desk.

I am investing in a fricking lock.

HA!

2009-03-18T17:27:00.002Z

Got my dogs back.

Not sure if the steak under my pillow had anything to do with it.

Went to McDonald's for annual Shamrock Shakes last night. Color me yummy.

29 DAYS left until April 15th! Hoo-Rah, baby!

My kids have gymnastics tonight so I get an hour to sit and read Angels and DEmons... Ooooohhhh!

I am having parent conferences right now and so far, aside from getting an entire hour for lunch (gasp! unheard of as a teacher!) it has been the most unproductive afternoon of my life.

Thank you for visiting, have a lovely afternoon.

So Lonely

2009-03-17T13:43:00.002Z

No, I am not describing tax season in general.

Although my husband may work crazy hours from now until April 15th, I am used to it. Each night, I may go to bed alone, but I at least have my dogs to curl up and keep me warm, keep me company.

Last night, Ira came home to do his rounds before heading back to the office. He went in each of their rooms to tuck them in and give hugs and kisses good night, before coming to find me in my bed, with my dogs, catching up with Mr. DVR. I thought it was my turn to get tucked in before he headed back to work.

Wrong.

He pulled Rufus to the edge of the bed.

"Haley wants Rufus."

He picked up the 85 pounds of dead sleeping weight (dog wasn't budging. Gave me a 'What the hell? kind of look on the way out the door) and took him to Haley's bed.

Izzy wasted no time snuggling closer to me for some loving and was rewarded with a head scratch, just the way she likes.

Enter Ira.

Scoop Izzy.

WTF? look on dogs face.

"Erin is lonely."

?????

and I am not?

So last night, I went to sleep. Alone. Completely alone. Waiting for my dogs to come back.

Damn dogs.

My feet were cold all night.

Just you wait until they come looking for cookies when I get home today.

It is all my father-in-law's fault that I have two Guinnea Pigs!

2009-03-12T01:57:00.004Z

I know, that sounds very strange, especially considering that as I write this he is not even aware that I HAVE the 2nd one, but it is completely true.
Let me explain.

Many years ago, maybe 13 or so, he and I used to read Robin Cook stories. One of us would get each of his new books and pass it on to the other. We both loved these stories. My FIL also, about this time, began to listen to books on tape, or audio books. I was appalled. How could one be so lazy as to need to listen to a book? I refused.

I refused, that is, until he bought the new Robin Cook novel on Audio Tape and I, as a newlywed working for like $6 an hour could not afford to go buy the book myself. So I had to borrow his book-on-tape.

I was horrified. Books on tape were for old people and the blind. For the lazy. I couldn't believe I was stooping to this level.

But I needed my fix, so I started listening on the way to school in the car. And it was good.

How does this have anything to do with me having pet rodents? Wait for it....

So, the story was good, and I realized, books on tape were a great way to make a drive go quickly. It was multi-tasking at its best! I can recall days when I would be sitting in my car, listening to a story in the parking lot at school, and the students would be knocking on my car window. "Mrs. Krassan, the bell rang, you're going to be late!" I just had to finish the chapter!

So, I caved and loved books on tape. It was my FIL's fault.

But that still doesn't explain this

So, the story continues....
The entire family all got hooked on Books-on-Tape. We would scour the local flea market on Sundays for the best deals and then pass them around. My in-laws strike again. One week they found The Green Mile by Stephen King.

You may remember the movie. It was a long movie. But not as long as the books. The books were released as a series of short books, about 8 of them I think, and there was, of course, a wait period between each new book. Building suspense. Think of the Harry Potter thing. It got to the point that when a new book was released, whoever listened to it first had to pass each individual tape along, because we couldn't wait for them to finish the entire book!

It was bad.

If you loved the movie, The Green Mile (with Tom Hanks) you should read the books. It is 27 times better.

and in this story was a mouse. named Mr. Jingles. And I loved Mr. Jingles.

Well, shortly after I finished reading this series, I began teaching 4th grade. As a brand spanking new 4th grade teacher, I needed a class pet. All the other young new teachers had class pets. Julie had a hamster. Nina had a fish. Shawn had a lizard in his room. So I wandered the aisles of the pet store and chose can you guess...a what? are you seeing it? Yup, a guinea pig and I named him Mr. Jingles. I did this for the kids, I said, but realy, it was for me. Naming him, the name was 100% because of that stinking book. I loved that book. I was so upset when I finished the books and that the story was over, I needed it to go on somehow. So I honored my love of all things literature, and gave myself a daily reminder of a story that truly reached my heart by naming my class pet after the mouse character (who played a bigger part in the book than he did in the movie, by the way) Mr. Jingles.

And you know what happened? I found out I loved Guinea Pigs. They are very cute and lovable little creatures. Sociable as well. Mr. Jingles would sit on the kids desk while they worked. When our custodian cleaned my room every night, Mr. Jingles would toss the food bowl around the cage until Bill came over, and opened the cage and pet him and brought him a treat. He was awesome.

Fast forward 100 years. Mr. Jingles retired from class pet life to spend his golden years with a former student. My daughter comes home one day and tells me her friend has to get rid of her Guinea Pig because her mom is "allergic" to it... after a year. {snort} Her friend wants us to take Miss Piggy, we are the only ones she trusts. I am sold, but can we convince daddy?

No.

Fast forward 2 more weeks. Miss Piggy comes home with all her treats, toys, cages, brushes and paraphanalia. . The girls are that good. A few months later, we are all enamored with the little thing. She is a doll, even daddy likes her.

But she is lonely.

I like things in twos.

Two children.

Two dogs.

Two Little Piggies.

When I mentioned it to my wonderful husband, in a would-you-mind-way, he responded, "Absolutely Not!"

He better be careful, or I will have Two Husbands, as well.

I Just Don't Care.

2009-03-11T18:16:00.003Z

There may only be two of them, but they so know they have the advantage. They see my weakness. I am tired. My strength is low. They are cute. And sweet. They move in for the kill.

"Mommy, can we stay up a little late and watch TV in your bed? Please? We won't bother you at all?"

and they don't. They will go in my room, turn on the t.v. and I won't hear a peep. It is so easy to just let them be. I should put them to bed... but it is so peaceful. They know I am weak. They know if they argue, laugh loudly, run, cause havoc, I will hear them and come marching to put them to bed.

So skillful are the young ones. Stealthy in their ways. So manipulative. How do they learn this at such a young age?

"Mommy, you go relax, we will be fine up here." and they go upstairs while I am sitting at my desk, working (ok, playing on the computer). Miraculously, for the first time all night, they behave like real people and get along.

One mishap. One instance of bad behavior. One cry of "Mommy! She....." will bring me running and end their time. So they are good. Extra good. It is frightening. It is bliss.

It is now well past their bed time. On a school night. Daddy is still not home and won't be for some time. I hate tax season. They are still quietly and very nicely watching TV.

and I just don't care.

It's never too early to learn to work the system.

Conversation at the Desk:

2009-03-10T00:58:00.002Z

Haley: Erin, I'm going to use one of your markers, ok?
Erin: Ok, Hale, but I am doing homework, so if I need it, you have to give it back.
Haley: Will I have homework some day?
Erin: Yeah. When you get big and go to my school, you will have homework just like me and we can both do our home work together.
Haley: Will we both always have homework?
Erin: Well, since I am older than you, I will only have homework until I get a job, then I won't have homework, but you will.
Haley: Will you still be my sister when you have a job?
Erin: Yes, Haley. But I will be very busy, so we might not be able to play games every day like we do now.
Haley: Can we still have sleep overs sometimes?
Erin: Sure, Hale.
Haley: And you will always be my sister, right, Erin?
Erin: Of course.
Haley: Thanks, Erin.

Slobber, Flying Socks, Lasts and Heavy Kids.

2009-03-06T17:39:00.002Z

I woke up this morning. Very Late. Desperately in need of a shower, I hurried through, dressed, and ran out the door. Only when I got to work did I see the ~~long clear slug-like-trail of~~ dog slobber down the left sleeve of my jacket. Oh, and I am not wearing a shirt I can go through the day without the jacket on. It is gross, and I did the best I could getting it out with some water and a paper towel, but clear runny snotty looking slobber is not attractive on your jacket sleeve.

Damn dogs.

Yesterday, when I was switching the laundry, I opened the dryer before the end of the cycle and one of my daughter's socks came popping out. This brought me waaaa-aaay back. When Erin was a little baby, whenever Ira or I would open the dryer while it was still running (to check and see if it was done already, because we are so not patient like that) little baby socks would always come flying out. It used to crack us up. Every. Time. Well, Erin got bigger, and the socks didn't pop any more. Then Haley came along and... you got it... Return of The Flying Socks! We had forgotten about those little pink things that popped out all the time. Well, I never realized as the girls got older, that their socks stopped popping. It just sort of, well, happened. One of those things that doesn't get noticed.

Until yesterday. When a sock popped out of the dryer. And it made me remember all those little tiny socks that always flew out every time I opened the dryer door. You don't notice when it is the last time something happens as your kids get older. Mine are far from babies now, and just where exactly did that time go? Erin is so big I can't really pick her up and carry her in the house if she falls asleep in the car. Or carry her to bed if she falls asleep on the couch or something. I have to wake her up and have her walk. I don't remember the last time I was able to carry her sleeping body like that and tuck her in. Why is it we remember all the firsts so clearly, but we don't recognize the last time we do something so monumental?

Haley fell asleep in the car last night and I carried her in the house. I know I have a while before she is too big for me to carry, so I cherish each time I scoop up that warm little body... but how do I know when the last time comes? Will I know to take a picture? As the second child, will I know to watch for it? Or will the day just show up that I can't? Already, she wants privacy in the bathroom (for her, not for me!) and dresses herself exclusively (explaining many of her fashion choices) and 1000 things they each do without me now that I used to do for them, How does this all happen and when does it stop? Ok, I don't want it to stop, I just want somebody to send me a memo and let me know when I have to play close attention to something in particular because it may be one of those "lasts" for one of my girls. I want to catch the "lasts" with all the joy and tears that I caught the "firsts" with.

I love watching my kids grow up. I don't miss the stages behind us. I don't like babies and I certainly don't want another. I just want to make sure I appreciate each and every stage we are in so that when they move on, I am ready for it.

So How Was Your Day?

2009-03-03T00:56:00.015Z

Layouts from January Getawy

2009-03-02T20:28:00.002Z

I went to Ocean City with the S.A.G. group in January. This is some of the 30 layouts I did that weekend.

So easy a 5 year old can do it.

2009-03-01T21:25:00.006Z

I love my iflip. My husband got it for me for this past hanukkah. It is nice and small so I can toss it in my purse and keep it with me for those spur of the moment things that I want to capture. It is also so easy to operate, literally, just push a button. Maybe, too easy..... Exibit A: Haley records herself.

Mr. Intendant

2009-02-25T18:03:00.002Z

Erin came home from school on Monday and told me how special her class is. It seems they had spent the entire day practicing their very best behavior and getting their routine just ~~predictable~~ perfect in preparation for a visitor on Tuesday: The Superintendent!

My sweet 2nd grader informed me that this man, some important guy, comes to each school once every year, and visits 3 classrooms. He was coming to her room tomorrow because they are the ~~lucky winners~~ very BEST! He would also visit a 5th grade, because they are the oldest and a kindergarten because they are little and cute, she figures, and people always like the little kids, ya know. But the principal, she came to Erin's class and said she picked them for the visit because they are just THE BEST! Gee, I am sure the teacher was ~~not~~ thrilled......

Anyway, her teacher, Mrs. M. spent most of the day getting them ready. Reminding them of their manners, exactly how they were to behave, what they would do when he came... yadda, yadda, yadda. She was so excited for this great honor being bestowed upon her humble yet fabulous class.

After school on Tuesday, when Erin arrived home, I asked about her day.

"Well, Mr. Intendant came and it is was great! He was there with another guy, but he didn't introduce himself. That was rude."

???? Mr. Intendant???? "Who, honey?

"You know, Super Intendant, mommy. I told you all about him coming yesterday. It was cool; I got to tell him about my biography person but he didn't know much about Helen Keller so I had to tell him all about her."

~~Oh Shit.~~Interesting.

"You didn't tell him any of the jokes you got from google about Helen Keller, did you?"

"No, just some interesting facts."

Good. She does have a bit of a brain filter.

I hope you enjoyed your visit to second grade, Mr. Intendant.

Emptying My Brain....

2009-02-24T18:40:00.002Z

Something is wrong with a group of 8th graders walking down the hall shouting out words like "estrogen! fallopian tube! testicles!" and no adult questioning it. Remind me to stay away from the health class rooms from now on.

Picking Haley up from school this week, I zipped her coat up too high (she hates that). When she started complaining that she didn't like this coat, I offered to help her unzip it if she gave me a kiss. The following conversation took place:

"Mommy. I DO NOT like this coat! The zipper goes up to high on my little neck and it is most uncomfortable!"
"No honey, I zipped it up so high so you would need help and I could get an extra kiss from you. I did it on pore-piss (sometimes I say things wrong just to be funny. I am one of those moms)
"Mommy! It is on purpose! Don't say porpoise or you have to go to speech!"
But I did get my extra kiss.

I made chicken chili for dinner. It was very yummy. I made enough to feed a small village in South America. For just the girls and I. I have cooking issues.

Haley drank most of hers through a straw. Then she picked out all the beans and ate them first. Then she ate the chicken. Kids are not supposed to like chili. She ate her weight worth of it. It was hot and spicy, too.

Erin liked it and ate her fair share. About half an hour later she was helping me clean up the kitchen when she said, "Mom, I gotta go to the bathroom. The chili is kicking in."

?

"I think my digestive system needs to empty out. This could take a while."
She is going to hate me when she realizes I posted that, but it was so damn funny.

Why was Haley complaining in February of her coat? Why is she not used to it by now? Funny you should ask. Because this past weekend, she decided to wear a sweatshirt and her vest one day and left her winter coat at home. It must have been left in an "unsafe" place because the dogs got to it. Yes, the tag team of mass destruction. The mantra "Release The Stuffing" apparently applies to coats as well since this is the 3rd winter coat eaten by my dogs in 2 years. She is now wearing one of Erin's old coats. and it feels like hugging a marshmallow when you squeeze her in it.

Every day when I walk into the family room, Haley is watching TV. upside down. On her head. She likes the view that way.

Erin is doing her biography report on Helen Keller. She will tell you that Helen Keller was deaf, blind and dumb. Not the kind of dumb where you are stupid, like our dogs, just the kind of dumb where you can't talk. That is different. Then she will proceed to tell you how daddy told her to google Helen Keller jokes. She learned some ~~lousy~~ good ones.

How did Helen Keller burn her face?
She answered the iron?

How did Helen Keller play the piano?
She proceeds to make piano motions with one hand and then uses her other hand to make open-close mouth motions to imitate singing.

Thanks, daddy. That was ~~not at all~~ helpful.

After spending a half hour every day in the cafeteria on 7th grade lunch duty, I have a complete and comprehensive understanding of why wild animals eat their young. They don't want them to become adolescents.

My mother is sewing a quilt. She was doing this in front of Erin. Erin is now trying to sew everything in sight. Ira had a hole in his jeans and was going to throw them away. It is an unrepairable hole, truly. Erin decided she can "fix" it. Little girl actually took needle and thread to the jeans and sewed the hole. When Ira put them on they ripped from here to kingdom come. Erin thinks she has a lot of work to do now to fix that.... An entire leg has now come off of this pair of jeans and my 8 year old is going to repair it with a spool of white thread and a scrapbook needle I use on paper.

Pictures will follow....

Haley is not allowed to bring meat to school for lunch. We have told her we found special ~~veggie and soy~~ "kosher chicken nuggets" that are allowed. Ok, they are veggie nuggets. She loves them. She eats them. Yesterday was the first day in about 4 months that she ate lunch that did not consist of PB & J. Yahoo. I will lie to my child if it opens up my options for packing lunches. Sue me.

Ira ordered new treats for the dogs. Cow Tracheas. ~~ack, gag, ugh~~ Yum. They gave Izzy such bad gas I was actually nauseous. I had to remove her from the room. It was toe curling, stomach churning, nose-hair-burnin, napalm dropping gas. I think I just threw up a little in my mouth thinking about it, it was that bad. On the good side, there is apparently a lot of chondroitin and glucosomine or something like that in tracheas which is good for joint strength and since Rufus has that bum knee, this is good. If they don't stink us out of house and home.

I think we will save those treats for when they are at the kennel?

Ok. I feel better.

Have a lovely day.

Cops are People Too

2009-02-18T15:48:00.002Z

Tuesdays are our crazy night. Haley has Cheer-tumble (cheerleading & gymnastics combo class) from 5:20-6:20 and Erin is at Hebrew school until 6:30. I literally scoop Haley up from her class, toss her sweats and shoes on and run out the door, drive like a ~~crazy lunatic~~ quick, safe, responsible mother, from gym to Temple to grab the other child and by then... dinner is something we need fast!

So, to Saladworks we go, rather than the traditional McDonald's, in an attempt to be healthy. {snort}yeah, cause pouring ranch dressing over the bacon and cheese on your salad really makes it healthy....

But, I digress....

So, as we stand in line, the girls are 9 kinds of cranky and getting on each other's last nerves. Expected, since they have been together for exactly 6 minutes so far today. While arguing over salad toppings it gets to the point where, glancing at the 2 uniformed police officers behind us in line, I make this statement:

"If you two don't stop this behavior this minute, I am going to be forced to beat you right here, in public, in front of police officers, who will then have to arrest me and put me in jail. Then you will be orphans for the rest of tax season because daddy works all the time. I would stop this RIGHT NOWif I were you and start listening to mommy and getting along with each other THIS MINUTE!!!!"

I don't know about the family status of those two guys, but I swear I saw a smirk from them before they glared at me and my kids.

The good glare too. the real stink eye. The same one I give my middle school students. The one that scares them solid.

The girls offered politely to go wash their hands then and fix our drinks.

Half way through dinner (at the table next to aforementioned officers, I am no dummy) Erin pulls a rock out of her coat pocket that she found on the playground. After they investigate it, she decides they have to go wash their hands again because it was from under the dirt. While they are in the bathroom, I hear a scream. I quietly continue munching my salad and disregard. Officer #1 leans over and says to me, "I have 2 little ones at home. Need me to pull my gun and run into the bathroom?"

I think I love that man.

Sniffling-sneezing-snot-running-down-your-nose-drive-to-school.

2009-02-17T13:10:00.002Z

No, it wasn't my first day back to work after an extended maternity leave. But close. It is just an ordinary Tuesday after a 3 day weekend. I wasn't happy about getting up, but who ever is happy about getting up on a cold morning when bed is warm and cozy, if not somewhat crowded?

When I got out of the shower I heard a paniced "Mommy!" and a little whining. It was Haley. I went in to see her and she was distraught. "Don't ever leave me mommy!" she cried all over me. God, that just broke my heart. I promised her I would come snuggle her before I went to work, and I had to go get dressed. (I was wrapped in a towel, how could she miss that?)

So, I got dressed, dried my hair, put on some make-up and readied myself for school. I went down stairs to feed the ~~beasts~~ dogs and make a cup of coffee when I hear the paniced scream "MOMMY! Mommy, where ARE you!?"

This was serious.

I ran upstairs and there is my poor child, my baby, in tears, sobbing that I had left her. That I had not come in to hug her goodbye. Sobbing. Heart wrenching gut-sobs. The kind that make her entire little body shake.

"Mommy, don't ever leave me, I love you too much."

and I had to settle her down with the Wonder Pets and go to work.

So, as stated earlier, I had indeed put on some make-up this morning, and done my hair as well. Yeah, most of that was cried, rubbed and snotted off on the way to school as I sobbed and snotted all over myself.

Sometimes it sucks to be the mom.

A Wonderful Day

2009-02-16T22:14:00.002Z

Under normal circumstances, I fear spending too much time alone with my kids. without other adults. being in charge.

Today was not one of those days.

Thanks to the help of some friends and my parents and well timed playdates, I got to spend a little time alone with each girl this weekend. That is a rarity during tax season. They are so much easier to appreciate one-on-one. We get to have that individual alone time that you don't get when you are the single mom because dad is working 7 days a week. It was awesome.

Today, my nephew Jake was here to play and hang out with us. We ran some errands together and just hung out. Did you know that for less than $10 you can by a complete lunch for 4 people, including dessert, at BJ's? They played at AC Moore, played outside, went to the park, I did some laundry. It was a great afternoon.

I just met my sister to drop Jake off, and now I am home with my girls. We are all watching Mama Mia that I picked up from Blockbuster, eating popcorn and having a grand old President's Day.

Sometimes, I really love being home with my girls, just the 3 of us. Right now is one of those times.

I So Suck.

2009-02-13T01:26:00.003Z

I done it this time. Today was Erin's Valentine's Day Party. Her school is closed tomorrow for a teacher inservice day, so the festivities were today. and I forgot. We didn't make any cards or little treat bags for her to bring in for her classmates. Everyone else in her class got to walk around and put their envelopes in the made-for-the-occasion pink and red decorated gift bags except my little girl. She was the only one in the class without any thing to give out. I screwed up big time. It just slipped my mind. She is only in 2nd grade, and I am so upset that my baby missed out on something. She was in a Jewish daycare/kindergarten for the 1st 6 years of her life and didn't have Valentine's parties, so I am making up for lost time here and I blew it.

She took it pretty well and was completely fine. One of the other girls ended up being out sick, so Erin got to hand out her cards...but still... I feel like the worst-mother-in-the-world. I am the mother other mothers talk about. The little Indian boy, well his mom apparently also forgot, and he brought in plain white security envelopes with 2 quarters in it and just his "from John Doe" on the outside. If I hadn't forgotten cards, I would so be talking smack about that kid. Yeah, I am worse than that even. Mother of the Year for 2009 is over for me. Looks like I have to wait until 2010 to try again.

What they say about daddy.....

2009-02-12T16:06:00.005Z

We were in the car on our way home from gymnastics. The girls were complaining that they are missing daddy and tax season is soooo looooong..... I know, I feel the pain. But I try to acknowledge and move on, not downplay or linger, so...

"Girls, why don't we make a list of all the things we can about daddy that we miss when he isn't home?"

Here are some of the things they came up with, in no particular order, God's honest truth, all on their own. I will have to scrap this....

He makes the best hot cocoa

He remembers to sleep with a T-shirt on. (They hate to sneak in and snuggle a hairy chest!)

He is the best torturer!

He fixes things good. Well mostly. After he breaks them.
He is annoying.

He is a good snuggler.

He buys us candy.
He is fun.

He is the best daddy when he isn't torturing us.

He is good with animals. Except Miss Piggy. (our Guinea Pig) And sometimes Izzy and Rufus. (our dogs) But he loves them so the torture part doesn't count too much.

Its fun when he drives crazy as long as he doesn't hit other cars and get yelled at like that one time with the crazy lady.

He makes popcorn and lets us eat it on your (mommy's) side of the bed when you are away!

He does cold water torture when we are in the bath.

He is good at Math (I sure hope so!)

He plays the games on the menus when we go out to eat.

He doesn't have an itchy face.

He takes us to the movies and lets us eat candy even when mommy says no.

He says if he has to have girls, he is going to spoil them and that even means mommy. (I like that one particularly!)

I want to add something to this list myself.

He remembers to plug my phone in to charge at night after I go to bed.
He empties the dishwasher even when I don't ask him.
If I cook something and leave it out to cool, he wraps it up and puts it in the fridge when I forget about it.
And he is an awesome snuggler.

Hurry up, April 15th. We need our daddy back.
We love you.

Funny things my kids said this week....

2009-02-06T13:47:00.011Z

Haley: Mommy, your shirt
is so beautiful! It is so
beautiful because it is made
of sheep

Haley: Mommy, that man is
lawn mowing his snow!
Me: Its a snowblower, honey.
Erin: My spanish teacher
is from Peru. They have
llama-mowers.
???
That's how they cut their grass.
Me: Oh.

Mushy, Lovey & Full of Gratitude.....{Not What I Started, But I like Where it Went}

2009-02-05T16:41:00.007Z

Last weekend.. or was it 2 weeks ago? either way.. I went away with my girlfriends for a scrapbook weekend. I know, I know, DORKY! But it's what we do. It was the Scrapbookers Anonymous Getaway run by my friend Lisa and her friend Laura. It was an all inclusive weekend with your room, food, scrapbook space... just awesome! The best part of the deal?

Time with my friends.

I don't know why I am so blessed. I certainly don't deserve all this. Having these friends makes my life so much fuller. We get together 4 times a year for a girls weekend and the pretense of scrapping. I am an artsy-creative person, and this is my outlet. When we go away, it gives me the freedom to just create, to express myself, to be messy and not clean up and just accomplish things. It feeds my creative soul. I relish the chance to just be.

More than that, it connects me to some of the most important women in my life. We call ourselves "The Black Sheep". It was kind of a funny and completely innocent story that ended up getting us in trouble(well, me mostly for some reason, as usual, even though I don't think I was the one to coin it, and it came mostly from a passing comment someone made, and then someone else found this extremely cute sweatshirt on line and we wanted to get something warm...but I digress). So, now we "Flock" and make stupid sheep jokes (and lots of jokes, mostly very inappropriate jokes which use very bad language that you wouldn't believe I say in front of my mother, except she is one of the biggest offenders and curses even more than I do! There I go digressing again...) and we wear slippers and flannel pants for 3 days and scrap and eat Twizzlers and Diet Pepsi and Cheetos (but only the crunchy kind and only with a nose picker which is really a scrap book tool.. whole other story though)and have matching sweatshirts and T-shirts and buy way too much stuff just because someone else has it.

We stay up until 3:00 in the morning or later. Some of sleep in, some of us don't. I won't mention who does or doesn't shower. We pack heavy, eat bad, and laugh until we cry or splurt some type of beverage from our noses. We say the dumbest stuff that is hysterical at the moment, and then insist on writing it down to remember later because really, who could possibly come up with some of this stuff? But truthfully, we just want to preserve the time we spend together and make that laughter last a little longer. We always get little presents for each other, we blog, we email, and every time I see a sheep, anyplace, any time, I smile. I smile because it makes me think of them, how much fun we have on our weekends and just how much I love each and every one of them.

There is Bonnie and Amy, sisters I have known since we were kids through our moms. We hadn't seen each other in years and then sort of renewed our friendship as adults. Chris and Aubree, I met through our children in one way or another. Lisa and I had a mutual group of acquaintances that we scrapped with and just kind of clicked. All of these girls and I just sort of work somehow. Not easy for a large group of women to do. They are no nonsense, honest, loyal, fun, kind, and accept me for what I am without any reservations. This is the best you can get in a friend.

And then, the last, of this group, I have known since the day I was born. My mom. If I scrap, she scraps. If I was going away and having fun, well, then she had to go too. She fits right in and laughs right along with the rest of us. I love that I get to share this with her. I came very close to losing my mom a few years ago, so I treasure each day with her. I have to make sure that we get to create as many memories and fun times as possible while she is here so that I can hold them in my heart when she isn't some day. And when that day comes, not for a long time I hope, I know my sheepy friends will be there to help me through it. That, my friends is cool on a completely whole other level.

So as you can see, the 7 of us are a hodge-podge of people. They call me the glue of the group, since I am the common connection that brought us all together. I think of them as the glue that holds me together sometimes. We go away once each season. Come hell or high water, I need my sheep to flock. They ground me. They accept me. They know me. They know I can be a bitch, they know I am not always the easiest of people, the most likable of people, and yet, for some strange reason, they love me anyway. I am not sure how they do it, but they see the good in me. Everyone has days when they feel like the world is against you. When other people are all good at pointing out your faults, your weaknesses, the mistakes you made, and the choices you should have chosen. Sometimes, when I have a hard time seeing the good in myself, I think of them. Sometimes that is all it takes to make the day a little brighter.

So here is to you, my friends.
Thanks for liking me just the way I am.

Envy

2009-02-03T17:31:00.002Z

You know who my husband and I envy? Seriously? Separated parents. We had this conversation.

Him: You know, so-and-so only has her kids every other weekend. She gets alternate weekends off when they go to their dads.

Me: Nuh Uh! SHUT UP!

Him: Yup. She gets to sleep in, do whatever, go out on dates and doesn't have to get any sitters. The schedule is set for like 6 months ahead so planning is easy.

Me: That is so cool. I mean, a parent is like the best babysitter EVER! Wanna get separated?

Him: Yeah! That would be awesome! Think about all the stuff we could get done on the weekends we don't have the kids!

Me: What would you do?

Him: Oh, I don't know, stuff around the house, go to a movie and dinner, you know, things we never have time for.

Me: Me too. I would love to stay out late, see a double feature, know we didn't have to get up Sunday and do all the parent stuff. Even running errands and grocery shopping is easier when you don't have to answer to anyone. Only one problem.

Him: What?

Me: On my weekend, I would want to go out with you, and you would have the kids.

Him: Oh. Yeah. Well, I could go out with you on my weekends?

Me: Nope, I would have the kids. One of us would still need to find a babysitter.

Him: Oh. That sucks. Guess we should just stay married.

Me: Yeah. Suppose so.

Twenty Years together folk, and we are sticking it out. because it is too hard. to find. good. sitters.

True Love.

There Were 6 in the Bed and the Little One said.....

2009-02-03T00:32:00.003Z

..."I don't have any room, here.". Yeah, me either. Go to your own bed, kid. How can we have 6 when we are a family of 4 you ask? Are we taking in random strangers from the street to keep them warm?

No, we are not.

If we did, I would at least make them sleep on the couch, anyway. I have some rules, you know.

The 6 I speak of are as follows:
Me.
Husband.
85 pound snoring dog.
50 pound farting dog.
8 year old daughter.
5 year old daughter.
That makes 6.
and 2 of them do NOT belong.
They are stow-away sleepers that sneak in during the night and creep up from the bottom of the bed, searching for a little crack or crevice to snuggle into.

When I went to bed, around 10:00 I had the whole king size bed to myself. All the pillows. All the blankets. So lovely. Shortly after that, Rufus, the snoring dog, joined me. This was good. I was cold. He is warm. We drifted off together. The best part about sleeping with Rufus, is that he offers me some protection. You see, my husband is a Blanket Thief. He first takes all the covers by rolling them around himself when he gets cold. Sort of a cocoon, if you will. To be expected when he turns the heat down to 40 degrees and the ceiling fan on to turbo speed. Whatever.... I have learned to keep an extra blanket on my side for such emergencies. Always be prepared, and all that.

Now, his cocoon gets too warm, so he then tosses his blankets (which started out as my blanket) on the floor on his side of the bed. Our room, due to his temperature regulations and fan controls, is arctic tundra like. So he gets cold. Again. And he steals my second emergency set of blankets. This can go on all night with as many sets of blankets as I stock up on. He will steal pillows as well. Right out from under my sleeping head. Because it's not like I was using it or something. In the morning, I have not one cover, and he is cocooned up like a bug-in-a-rug with a pile of discards 4 feet high on his side of the bed.

I so love my husband as my frostbitten extremities are sloughing off on my way to the shower since I wake up almost 2 hours before him and the heat isn't even on yet.

Enter Rufus, the farting 85 pound boxer. He gets in bed. He insists on placing himself directly next to me. in the middle. on top of the blankets. You ever try to steal blankets with an 85 lb dead weight on them? Yeah, not so easy. Then, add Izzy who sneaks in during the middle of the night, at 50 lbs. Those blankets are going NOWHERE BABY! I am warm, and victorious! Muhahahahahaha! {that is my evil laugh. I am The Beast Master!} Ok, so I have to sleep with ear plugs and a gas mask, but some times a victory has its costs.

Now, we have become accustomed to this battle of the boxers each night. Ira comes to bed, drags them where they need to be, and no longer steals my covers. But the bed is full, there is no room at the Inn. Maximum capacity has been reached.

I woke up this morning. There was something on my head. It was another head. It was a very warm, fury and possibly drooling head. It was a very heavy head. There was a very small body, belonging to my 5 year old daughter, to my right, next to my alarm clock. She had some sharp bony appendage in my ribs. Another pair of bony parts was in the middle of my thigh. My legs were land-locked from another dog. and I had no covers.

***{Disclaimer: This picture is from Google. As much time as my dogs spend in my bed, they see the camera and they get all excited and jump out. They will not stay for a picture. Plus, my boxers are much cuter. Sorry if these are your dogs or something.}

Daddy is just SOOOOOO Proud!

2009-02-02T00:58:00.002Z

We were ready. Super Bowl Sunday folks, and the chips are dippin, the wings are spicy, the hoagies, well, hoagie-ing?

We are all systems GO! 6:00 comes, we have the T.V. on, our 3-D glasses all punched out and lined up, my sister-in-law has made her football shaped cut-out sugar cookies. Can't have a The Super Bowl without them. The players take the field. Faith Hill sings. We see the crew of flight 1549 take the field to be honored for their actions on the Hudson river landing last week.

How fabulous was Jenifer Hudson singing the National Anthem? I stood with pride listening to her honor our country, right there in my kitchen.

Game time, folks, we are READY!

Kick-off comes and goes and it is officially Super Bowl XLIII
Kids all wander into the kitchen to fix a plate.

My 8 year old daughter glances up at the television and says "That's The Super Bowl? I thought it was supposed to be about BOWLING!"

Daddy was so proud.

Kid doesn't get out much, I guess.

Calling all...... Well...everybody!

2009-02-01T00:08:00.002Z

My daughter's 2nd grade class is doing a project. They are collecting postcards from all over the world, hopefully. They have asked the kids to ask everyone they know to send them a post card so they can mark the location on the map. The kids mostly know people on the East Coast. Boooo-rinnnnnnggggg.

So... mommy thinks global.

That is where you, dear Internet, come in.

If you would be so kind, and are interested in helping a second grade class out (and not like that email where you add your name to a chain and forward to everyone you know) then do me a favor.

Get or print out a postcard that shows something from your neck of the woods. City, state, province, anything regional. If you are computer savvy, jut print out a picture of the "Welcome to My Town" sign! and mail it to my daughter's class at the address below.

Johnson School
c/o Mrs. Murawczyk 2nd grade class
for Erin
500 Kresson Road
Cherry Hill, NJ 08034

Yeah, I am cheating by helping her kick the other kids asses in the "who got the most post cards" contest... I never said I played fair.

This would be a fabulous time for my aunt in CANADA to play along, by the way! Another in Las Vegas, would be good, maybe a cousin in California. I am using you all for your zip code. I will keep you updated as the post cards roll in.

Thanks in advance, all!

This. Is. JEAOPARDY!

2009-01-30T17:36:00.003Z

Answer:

"I like it when you two talk nicely to each other"

"Why can't you stop argueing?"

"STOP FIGHTING!"

"If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all."

"You are getting along for a change!"

Question:

Things my children say to my husband and I at night when we are getting ready for dinner.

I'll take "From the Mouths of Babes" for $500, Alex

Rules of Engagement

2009-01-29T16:06:00.002Z

According to Bill Gates:

Rule 1: Life is not fair - get used to it.

Rule 2: The world won't care about your self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself.

Rule 3: You will NOT make $60,000 a year right out of high school. You won't be a vice-president with a car phone until you earn both.

Rule 4: If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss.

Rule 5: Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your Grandparents had a different word for burger flipping: they called it opportunity.

Rule 6: If you mess up,it's not your parents' fault, so don't whine about your mistakes, learn from them.

Rule 7: Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you thought you were. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent's generation, try delousing the closet in your own room.

Rule 8: Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life HAS NOT. In some schools, they have abolished failing grades and they'll give you as MANY TIMES as you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.

Rule 9: Life is not divided into semesters. You don't get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you FIND YOURSELF. Do that on your own time. (I need to interject here... This rule is not entirely true. If you become a teacher, you still get those vacations and summers, thank you very much!)

Rule 10: Television is NOT real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.

Rule 11: Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one.

I have posted this in my classroom. It is about time someone told these kids the way things really are. I am sick of them thinking they deserve life handed to them on a platter.

Life is hard, you wanna win, play harder.

2009-01-29T13:10:00.001Z

Seriously, I say this at least 14 times a day. It is a chair. A standard issue el-cheapo office chair. I have it in my classroom. Why is it that kids (read 7th and 8th graders, otherwise known as 2-legged hormones) just like to sit on this chair and SPIN? ...over and over. Why is it that when I ask them to stop, they can't for more than like 12 seconds? I mean, these kids have all been to amusement parks. The school I teach in is not that far from Great Adventure (Six Flags)? They go on all these super flipping roller coaster rides. They have been to Dorney Park, Hershey Park, Disney, all kinds of places. What is so frigging fascinating about a spinning office chair?

Don't even get me started on the hydraulics! OMG, the fact that there is a lever that can make the chair height lower.... they are all like, "Pimp my chair, baby!" Yeah, the newest MTV show, let's pimp out a standard issue office chair? Pre-teens are amazing. Their poor parents must spend a fortune on all the appropriate video games and ipods and cell phones.

Here is a tip, moms and dads.... go to Office Depot and get them the $79 special in mustard yellow. It will keep them amused foreva!

I hope I remember this when my girls turn 12?

Sneaky Joy

2009-01-28T17:25:00.004Z

I got a SNOW DAY! I got a SNOW DAY! (Yes, I am singing)

Littlest munchkin went to daycare with daddy at 9:00 and I played good mommy and drove the big one to school after her 2 hour delay. Now I have a day to myself, just me, the snuggle dogs quietly (or not) snoring and farting at my feet, and a big ass cup of coffee. Here I sit, still in my pajamas. (Thank goodness drop off at school did not require me to get out of the car, although I would have just put shoes on with my pajamas, who am I kidding?)playing on the computer.

Today is one of those days I so LOVE MY JOB!

Now back to our regularly scheduled programing....

2009-01-27T13:35:00.002Z

Yes, my friends, the slacker mom returns.

I cam home from school yesterday, put on pajamas, and got in bed to spend some quality time with the DVR and my dogs. Both girls, after a busy weekend and not feeling so well, were content to play in their rooms. We had frozen chicken nuggets & macaroni & cheese for dinner. I had a donut in lieu of said dinner, and then.. nothing. Played on the computer a bit, Erin did homework, Haley not so sure where she was? Bedtime came and went and I accomplished gloriously NADA last night.

Yes, life is good.

Going to Hell in a (Designer) Handbag... I hope it's Gucci?

2009-01-22T16:30:00.002Z

It is the Apocalypse. Or Armageddon. Or perhaps hell is freezing over? (It is pretty damn cold out there today.) Things have just been, well, WRONG lately. On so may different fronts.

Let's start in the kitchen.

Last week I cooked dinner.

4 times.

I shit you not.

I know, I know, I checked, I did not have a fever nor was my body invaded by aliens or something. I don't know what came over me? I went to the grocery store on Sunday (best time to go is during the middle of the Eagles game when you live in South Jersey. VACANT!) and got fixings for several real meals. I roasted a chicken. I made a roast beef. Mashed potatoes. No frozen ready mades AT ALL! I didn't serve leftovers ONCE! Strange....hmmmm, well at least it was then Friday.

It didn't stop there. Next, I baked cookies. Ok, ok, they were the Pillsbury break apart ones you just put on a sheet and pop in the oven, but still.. I had to preheat, and watch the timer and cool and everything. And I made 4 different kinds and didn't burn any. The fact that I even had them in the house is a frigging miracle. Oh, and I added cinnamon sprinkles to the plain sugar cookies. Who doesn't love a snickerdoodle, after all? Then I baked brownies. Two batches. Ira was going away with the guys for the weekend, so I thought it would be nice to give them a big container of baked goods. Hello, who am I?

See, I told you it was weird?

Now, the oddities continue. While said husband was away, I was alone with the children for 3 days. And I didn't really mind it. I even enjoyed it. I arranged play dates. I picked up from birthday parties. We went to the movies. I know, I had a little help.. but she did put a hole in the wall... so that has to balance out a little. And I never once lost my cool. I even ACCOMPLISHED THINGS while my husband was away. That has never happened before. The house stayed neat and orderly (except for that hole I mentioned earlier and that one spot that I think was dog vomit that no one is owning up to.) Laundry, dishes, all done, dogs, fish and guinea pig all fed on a regular basis. My children both lived through the weekend. I didn't yell at them. Much. and I cooked again on Monday. It was even a holiday (Love that MLK) and I could have gotten away with take out.

The pattern of domestic tranquility continues. And no, I am not competing for Mother of the Year. I lost out on that last week when Haley fell out of my bed and hit her eye on my nightstand and got a HUGE BRUISE and proceeded to tell her teacher I hit her.

But I digress.

So, we are on to week two. I cooked again. Twice. In 3 days. One night we had cereal and leftovers from the 1st night. Girls' choice. Last night I didn't yell at the kids even once, and I gave them ice cream for dessert. They didn't ask or beg or need to be bribed to eat a good dinner or leave me alone. (Although they did all that and it was rather pleasant) We were just 3 happy girls home alone together. Daddy didn't get home until well after they were both in bed, and when he arrived, there I was, dishes done, house cleaned up, watching TV and working at my desk. The picture of Domestic Bliss.

??????

Dishes were done? Laundry was done? Kids were in bed? I was pleasant after all that? There was a Plate of Dinner for him in the fridge. Chicken. Rice (2 kinds, because the girls each wanted something else. I am so kind) and Broccoli. Yeah, I am that good. I was not medicated. or drinking.

Something is happening to me.

Something is very wrong.

I think I am growing up. or nesting. or something.

WTF? How did that happen?

Now, as if all this isn't enough to prove that Doomsday is near...

Look at this.

I am going away this weekend with my girlfriends. We are going to Ocean City for this Scrapbook Dork Retreat (I prefer to view it as a spiritual retreat. If L. Ron Hubbard could start Scientology, then I am starting Scrapentology) Of all my girlfriends, I am always the last one to pack. We leave Friday morning at 9:00 a.m. so I am expected to start packing around 10:00 Thursday night. or later.

Well, folks, I am JUST ABOUT PACKED! My pictures were printed and organized on Monday night. Tuesday I gathered sketches, layout ideas and papers. Wednesday night I put papers and pictures together, added some other things to each pack, gathered tools and such. Tonight, I just have to put it all in a bag. My clothes and stuff are already in the suitcase, sitting on my bathtub just waiting for my toothbrush after I get dressed tomorrow. I am so READY!

Domestic AND organized. I don't get it. People LIVE like this?

Something is seriously WRONG here?

I even have written a note for my husband of things that he needs to do over the weekend. Hebrew school, birthday parties, things for the dogs...

Why am I so prepared? Organized? Domestic? It is as if Betty Crocker and Martha Stewart have taken over my body. Together. I even tried to go home and immediately put on my pajamas to see if it would help cease this nonsense yesterday. Nope, turns out I was equally as productive in flannel pants as I am fully dressed. Even more so because I was able to put the clothes I wore in the wash. Seems I thwarted my plan simply by trying to thwart my productivity. How's that for cutting off your nose to spite your face?

Next week I am turning over a new leaf. I will not cook. Not one night all week. I will not plan ahead. I will return to my unorganized ways.

I think I can, I think I can, I think I can...

Me and Barrack

2009-01-20T18:39:00.003Z

We have a new president in our country. It is a remarkable day. Regardless of who I cast my vote for this past November, I will respect President Obama; it is demanded by the position he now holds.

Today, reading through the assorted blogs I follow, I came across a letter written by Barrack Obama to his children. I have never been in the position of being served by a president that holds office while having young children. The Obama children are 10 and 7 while my girls are 8 and 5; our families, while so very different, have this in common. You can probably hear the same sisterly fights, the same music, the same cries of "Mom! where are my shoes!" in each of our houses. Ok... maybe not exactly the same, but you get the idea.

Then I read his letter to his two girls.

Dear Malia and Sasha,

I know that you've both had a lot of fun these last two years on the campaign trail, going to picnics and parades and state fairs, eating all sorts of junk food your mother and I probably shouldn't have let you have.
But I also know that it hasn't always been easy for you and Mom, and that as excited as you both are about that new puppy, it doesn't make up for all the time we've been apart. I know how much I've missed these past two years, and today I want to tell you a little more about why I decided to take our family on this journey.

When I was a young man, I thought life was all about me-about how I'd make my way in the world, become successful, and get the things I want.

But then the two of you came into my world with all your curiosity and mischief and those smiles that never fail to fill my heart and light up my day. And suddenly, all my big plans for myself didn't seem so important anymore.

I soon found that the greatest joy in my life was the joy I saw in yours.
And I realized that my own life wouldn't count for much unless I was able to ensure that you had every opportunity for happiness and fulfillment in yours. In the end, girls, that's why I ran for President: because of what I want for you and for every child in this nation.

I want all our children to go to schools worthy of their potential--schools that challenge them, inspire them, and instill in them a sense of wonder about the world around them.

I want them to have the chance to go to college--even if their parents aren't rich.

And I want them to get good jobs: jobs that pay well and give them benefits like health care, jobs that let them spend time with their own kids and retire with dignity.

I want us to push the boundaries of discovery so that you'll live to see new technologies and inventions that improve our lives and make our planet cleaner and safer. And I want us to push our own human boundaries to reach beyond the divides of race and region, gender and religion that keep us from seeing the best in each other.

Sometimes we have to send our young men and women into war and other dangerous situations to protect our country-but when we do, I want to make sure that it is only for a very good reason, that we try our best to settle our differences with others peacefully, and that we do everything possible to keep our servicemen and women safe. And I want every child to understand that the blessings these brave Americans fight for are not free-that with the great privilege of being a citizen of this nation comes great responsibility.

That was the lesson your grandmother tried to teach me when I was your age, reading me the opening lines of the Declaration of Independence and telling me about the men and women who marched for equality because they believed those words put to paper two centuries ago should mean something.

She helped me understand that America is great not because it is perfect but because it can always be made better--and that the unfinished work of perfecting our union falls to each of us. It's a charge we pass on to our children, coming closer with each new generation to what we know America should be.

I hope both of you will take up that work, righting the wrongs that you see and working to give others the chances you've had. Not just because you have an obligation to give something back to this country that has given our family so much-although you do have that obligation.
But because you have an obligation to yourself.
Because it is only when you hitch your wagon to something larger than yourself that you will realize your true potential.

These are the things I want for you--to grow up in a world with no limits on your dreams and no achievements beyond your reach, and to grow into compassionate, committed women who will help build that world. And I want every child to have the same chances to learn and dream and grow and thrive that you girls have. That's why I've taken our family on this great adventure.

I am so proud of both of you. I love you more than you can ever know. And I am grateful every day for your patience, poise, grace, and humor as we prepare to start our new life together in the White House.

Love, Dad

I am not naive enough to believe everything I hear. I know that there are several things people in high places put out there to gain our trust, our valued opinions; our votes. But as a parent, as a parent of two little girls just like me... I don't know, I may kind of like this guy. I hope that this letter to his girls came from his heart, and not his publicist. If it did, I think I could really like him.

May the next four years be all he promises us it could be.

Good luck, Mr. President.

Why I don't pay my Nanny

2009-01-19T02:48:00.007Z

See, hubs went away for the weekend. Of course, it is a 3 day weekend, kids being out of school Monday, and I am certain that I will most definitely strangle my eldest child and her sassy fresh mouth if left alone unsupervised with her for 3 days. So I do what any sane, self-surviving mommy would do. I call for reinforcement. My almost (2 months and like 7 days, we calculated) 15 year old niece to the rescue.... Dun-dun-da-da! Super-Sammy!
She is my rock. Old enough that she can stay up late and watch lousy movies with me, young enough that she has unending patience. She and I have always had that special Aunt-niece relationship. Don't know why, just have. She is happy to get away from her own brother and sister, I am so appreciative of the basically grown up company. Win-Win, ya know?

So, Saturday comes, Sam arrives, the world is good. The kids both have friends over to play, so Sam gets some time to just chill. When the friends go home, Me, Samantha, Erin and Haley go out for dinner and a movie and ice cream. Great night. Everyone goes to bed, not problem.

The morning comes, and Sammy, being the true gem that she is, gets up and makes my kids breakfast. Not the cold cereal and frozen waffle that they are used to either, mind you. I am talking a nice, hot cheesy omelet, toast, the whole nine yards. The kid practically set the table with fine china and a rose, I am telling you. Not only that, but she DID THE DISHES!!!! I mean, hello, can I bottle her? My husband doesn't even do that?

Yeah, all good so far, I am snoozing in bed, keeping my lazy self warm, listening to the antics as big cousin plays with the little ones. The sound of laughing and chasing in the air. Life is good.

Then there is the sound.

You know the sound.

It is The Sound of Something Very Bad Happening.

It is not a good sound.

The sound is followed by Erin and Haley running up the stairs at full force yelling "Mommy, mommy, come quick, Sammy fell and put a Hole in the wall!"

Um, is she ok?
Yeah, we think so.
Oh. Ok. I will be down in a minute.

Now Samantha, you see, is a bit clumsy. Ok, a lot clumsy. We are all used to this. You will notice after "The Very Bad Sound" I didn't go rushing. I was not doing the mother-run to see what was wrong. It wouldn't be the first time this kid has fallen and hurt herself. or something.

About a minute later when the girls came back upstairs, running. out of breath. smiling. like their father would have been. They said, "We have to call the ambulance, Sammy can't walk!" Ok, now I was at least curious. I got up, brushed my teeth and came down to this.

Don't move Sam! I say. Aunt Michelle is here to help! Poor kid thinks I am going to get her ice or something. Maybe some ace bandage to wrap it in, at least some Tylenol for the pain, right? Nope. No such luck. No Florence Nightengale am I. I come back with my camera and say "Everyone look at me!"

This is so totally a blogable moment. and maybe a scrapbook page too?

The best part is this. I text Ira a picture of the hole and label it "Sam's handy work". He spent the rest of the afternoon skiing wondering how the hell she could have put her knee through a 4 inch section of wall between two rooms going down a step. Only Sam could have managed that. I don't think she is even certain how it happened.

Yeah. This is so why I don't pay the hired help.

Childhood Memory Broken to Smithereens....A.K.A Conversation with my Mother.

2009-01-15T22:01:00.005Z

Growing up, my grandparents taught me all about the birds and the trees. I said trees, get your head out of the gutter, you pervert. They loved nature. As we would drive down the road, or sit at the table and look out the window, they taught me the name of different trees we saw, the kinds of birds in our region as well as their habits. I don't remember much of it now, but one thing I do remember fondly is the Robins.

Each spring, it was a family tradition, a race, a competition if you will.

Who will see the FIRST ROBIN in the spring. Which one of us would have the joy, no, the HONOR of reporting to the others, "I saw a ROBIN today!" This sighting was truly the miracle of spring. Groundhog-Schmoundhog. It was all about the Robin.

This is one of those memories of childhood that is true and strong. It is something I know I remember, not a story that I have heard so often I think I remember. I recall being out playing, with friends, riding a bike, walking home from school... searching the trees and skies....looking...hoping...would I be the one to spot it.

Spotting the first Robin of the spring to return from it's southern winter vacation is something I hold dear to my heart as a childhood tradition.

I have taught my children how important this is and we search each spring for this fabled bird together. Carrying on the custom my grandfather and grandmother taught me. Linking the generations.

Conversation with my mother. This morning. In January. When there is snow on the ground.

Nancy: You know how we always looked for the First Robin of Spring?
Me: Yeah?
Nancy: Well, I just found out Robins DON'T GO SOUTH! They go to the forest! And they are all eating the stuff in my bird feeder!
Me: Oh.
Nancy: Those DAMN Robins are not in the South, they are all in my backyard!

So, yeah, all the Robins have not flown south. The Robins are hanging out in South Jersey in an over 55 community. In a couple of trees. In my mom's backyard. Eating her birdseed.

Now I know how to win the contest this spring. Apparently, I just need to stalk her house.

Stink Bugs, Well... Stink!

2009-01-13T18:08:00.005Z

So, about 2 years ago, we started getting all these little brown bugs. They kind of looked liked seeds or something. There were a lot of them. I brought one of them to school and asked the secretary (who is an entomologist by trade, but that is another story) what it was. Yeah, it was a STINK BUG. She, of course, being an entomologist, had a big fancy Latin name for it. Something like Bugitius-Stinkitium I seem to think....

Anyhoo, she assured me that the strange warm autumn that turned cold suddenly was to blame on the sudden influx of these guys into our home and that they would vanish with true winter never to be seen again. Did you catch the first sentence "ABOUT 2 YEARS AGO?" Make the connection that I am writing this now? Yeah, they are still here. And I am getting rather tired of them. The damn little stink bugs, they are everywhere! They are not very smart either. They just sit. and watch. and wait. for you to find them. Then they make their stink. So I crush them. And then I stink. Little buggers have the last laugh, don't they?

They never try to escape like most bugs do. No-sir-ee. They just sit there. As if I am going to mistake their brown bugginess for something else. Even Haley will kill them all by herself. The cry of STINKBUG! can be heard at any time of day or night in our house... followed by a deep sigh and "I'll get a tissue". You can't let them touch you. Not even your shoe. They squirt their noxious smell and then you must go through a detox chamber to remove the odor.

One day this fall, Ira was cleaning up the back porch. He hit Stinkbug Jackpot. He picked up the cooler we had left outside, and lo and behold... buggy NIRVANA living in the wheels of the cooler! I look out the window, and there is my husband doing this Irish Stepdance interpretation as he clopped all over the things on our back porch. As he continued to pick up the seasonal things to put away, each item uncovered a new colony. Seems they found our stuff was the perfect cover in the turning weather. HA! He showed them, now, didn't he? There had to be close to 200 little brown corpses scattered all over the deck. Which he insisted on leaving there. As a message to the others. "Stink Bugs Be Wary Of This Porch" Yeah, the things are sooo smart, that they would see their fallen comrades and fly someplace else to infest. Did I not mention that they fly? Yes. They do. So, now our deck reeks of stink bugs, as did my husbands sneakers. It was worth the price to watch the suckers die. But that was not the last time he defeated his arch-nemesis. No indeed.

Then, last winter there was the first fire of the season in our fire place. Did you know that if you don't clean out the fireplace at the end of winter, and you leave like alllll the ashes in there, it is a wonderful place for stink bugs to hide? And that when you finally open up the fireplace, and start to rip up paper, lay down kindling and stack up logs, they don't scurry like smart little bugs? And when you toss in the first lit match, those little stinkers just sit... and fry... and sizzle...and make a wonderful popping sound? And in the fire, they don't smell that completely awful. So last fall, we had another small victory over one particular colony. If only that was the end.

But alas, that was the 2nd season of the stinkbug.

They were back this fall. Third time.

Last weekend, Ira went out back and realized somehow he had left the cover off the grill (Ok, Rufus probably pulled it off, but let's not go there). He opened the lid, and it was a little rusty, so he lit it up to burn off the rusty spots.

See where I am headed?

Fry, buggies! Fry!

Nothing like crunchy stinkbugs to warm a gal's heart. I mean, how stupid can you be to live in a grill, for God's Sake? I love the way they crackle in the crisp winter night. I wish I could say revenge was sweet, but it was a little stinky. Still worth it. I just don't understand. They have chosen to live in places that we completely destroy them, yet they keep showing up. What is with these guys?

So our battle with the stinkbugs continues. If you know of any other methods to get rid of them, besides grilling, toasting, sending your kids and dogs after them or just doing the Stink-Bug-Irish-Step-Dance, please, share.

I am beginning to consider naming them and inviting them to family dinners. They show up anyway. Maybe they will help deter those family members you prefer to not have show up in the first place?

When Harry met Sally

2009-01-09T19:22:00.003Z

I was in one of my 8th grade classes today watching my kids during their earned "fun Friday" period. They work for a few weeks, then they get a period to play Math games, listen to ipods and hang out. It is one if my favorite times with them. I get to see them more relaxed, more real, and observe the real them.

Today, for some reason, they were more at home and comfortable, and they seemed to forget I was there. There was this one boy, I will call him Harry, and he is a cutie. He knows it. Then there is a girl, we will call her Sally.

Today in class, the kids are hanging out, doing their own thing. Harry walks past Sally and she puts her hand out. He puts his out, as if to high 5 each other, you know. But they clasp hands for a few seconds. it was sweet. He sat at a desk behind her, talking to someone else. She turned around and ran her hand over his hair. He has this really soft looking buzz cut. it, too, was sweet.

These kids are so loud, and rude, and sometimes disturbing. They can be mean and push limits. Even the big tough ones, like Harry.

Then I see him sit and look at Sally. He doesn't hold her hand in a girlfriend-I-Like-you-sort-of-way but it was a definite something. It isn't a pushy, dominating, show-off thing. Just...well... {sigh} the kind of thing that I know, as a former 13 year old girl, was melting her heart, sending butterflies through her stomach, and going to result in an immediate round of text messages as soon as the last bell rang today.

I, my friends, was the witness of that rare and beautiful thing. Young romance. Blossoming Love. What fairy tales are made of.

It just made me think of how truly lucky I am. to watch them at this stage in their lives when things are so tumultuous. new experiences. things they don't always understand. sometimes it makes them hard to deal with. sometimes it makes them impossible. sometimes it makes them incredible to know. and I get to be there. to share the lives of these kids. every. day.

Like Peanut Butter and Jelly

2009-01-09T02:36:00.006Z

>He weighs as much as almost 3 of her.

>She jumps on him knees first.

>He steals her food.

>She pulls his ears.

>He snuggles her on cold nights to keep her warm.

>She sneaks extra cookies and snacks to him when she thinks we aren't looking.

>He is always available to play when big sister is too "busy" (or mean).

>She doesn't get (too) mad when he destroys a toy, stuffed animal or stray sock.

You can't ask for more than that in your best friend.

Haley and Rufus. They just go together.

Where does she get this stuff?

2009-01-06T03:27:00.003Z

Erin: Mommy, I am a really good writer.

Me: Yes, you are.

Erin: I think a lot of people would like to read what I write. You know, like our family, and other people, and kids and stuff.

Me: I bet they would.

Erin: I think I should have my own blog.

Me: Uh... no. Um, Uh, Uhhhhh... just. no.

Hanukkah Madness

2009-01-04T18:48:00.001Z

We had our annual Family Hanukkah party and I got a little mini-video camera that night. I had only posted a video clip, but i finally got around to putting the still-pictures of the night here.

Christmas at Grammy's

2009-01-04T17:58:00.002Z

I know it is a bit late, but that just seems to be how I do things, so deal with it :o) Actually, I seemed to get sucked into Facebook everytime I turned the computer on and if that didn't get me, I have become addicted to about 20 or so fabulously hysterical blogs that I read religiously. My personal blogging and computing has taken a back burner to my addiction.

Anyway, here are the pictures my dad and I took Christmas morning. I am certain that the girls will hate me when they are older, but I have seen pictures of myself on many Christmas mornings that are not flattering. At least I had the consideration to give them adorable matching pajamas for Hanukkah the night before. (Ok, so I have scrapbook paper that matches the color of the pajamas... so sue me, but I have some great layouts coming as well now!) It isn't my fault Erin didn't like the shirt and wore something else.

You had to be there

2008-12-31T03:50:00.004Z

Erin got this kit one night for Hanukkah, you decorate these fake nails and then can glue them on. Every little girl's dream. Well, she decorated them with Ira the other afternoon, it was kind of like spin art with glitter. JUNK was the determination. The paint didn't stick, the glitter went everywhere but on the nails, but Erin was not deterred. I went upstairs the other day, and walked into our bathroom. This is what I saw.

Ira looks at me and says, "Now, THIS, is blog-worthy!" I had to laugh out loud. "If you told me a few years ago, hell, even one year ago, I would be putting fake nails on a little girl, I wouldn't have believed you!" What a dad won't do for his little girl. Well, I know one dad, a good friend of ours, a big, manly-man of a guy, who has a little girl. When I told him this story, he said he could do one better. Then he showed me his bright pink-painted big toe. What a dad won't do for his little girl.

Krassan Family Hanukkah Party

2008-12-22T03:52:00.006Z

Always amazing... always chaotic.... but i wouldn't have it any other way. Too many latkes (but they are sooo good) too much food, and just the right amount of family. The best part? I love that both my family and Ira's family all come together for all the holidays. It doesn't' matter if it is their holiday or not; Christmas or Hanukkah... they all celebrate together. That is just so cool. I got this cool little video camera thingy. Here is a clip of the madness when we counted down and let the kids tear into their pile of presents. My favorite moment of the night. Both of my girls got digital cameras. I will be accepting bribes to not post unflattering pictures of family and friends (and so far, majority of pictures they have taken all are) to this blog. I prefer milk chocolate, itunes gift cards, sweaters from J Jill, and Lucky Jeans :o) Just to warn you? Erin has already asked me how she can start her own blog. Don't say you didn't know...

Counting Down....

2008-12-18T13:04:00.000Z

The first night of Hanukkah (my choice of spelling) is only 3 nights away. Christmas is only 1 week away. My shopping is not complete.

If you are standing in front of me in line at any store, please pay with a non-declinable credit card you can just swipe and go. Do not write a check this time of year, use an ATM debit card with pin, or try to count out exact change while you talk on your phone and ignore the screaming toddler clinging like velcro to your leg digging in your purse for cheerios.

Please bring all purchases, with your final decision made to the register. Do not wait until the sales person has completed ringing up your items to ponder if you should indeed purchase that lovely red sweater with the barking dogs that actually "sing" jingle bells when you squeeze their nose for your niece. It is stupid and she will hate it.

Please have all your coupons and discounts ready. Do not ask the cashier if she happens to "have an extra" back there, or start digging madly in your purse for one you damn well know you don't have. It is annoying to the sales staff, and to me, the person behind you. Besides, you are not fooling anybody.

Please make sure you have an easily accessible bar code on al items you are purchasing. If not, please be so kind as to bring a 2nd item with you so that a SKU number can be obtained without causing a 40 minute delay as Earl or Himatonyaloket (seriously, I had a kid by this name in my class) goes to find the price on said reindeer sweater. I mean, come on. You looked for a price on the damn thing before you picked it up to buy, right? Didn't you notice it didn't have one then? Does everyone that works a cash register have some kind of amazing brain power that instantly recalls all SKUs and prices? You adn I have all seen some of the geniuses working at Target and Walmart. We know this to not be true. It is the holidays, show some kindness to these people and make sure you give them the bar code, people.

This is all I ask of you. It makes life so much easier for the procrastinators such as myself, but for the poor souls that are forced to stand behind the register and deal with the masses of idiots that leave their shopping until the end of December. In the spirit of the season, please, be a considerate shopper... and get the hel out of my way!

Halloween Layouts.

2008-12-16T01:28:00.001Z

Here are some layouts I did of the girls from Halloween this weekend while Ira was away in Las Vegas. Erin was a "Goth Cheerless-Cheerleader" and Haley was a 'Scary-Beautiful-Princess-Witch" by their own words. I don't know who had more fun; them dressing up or me getting their hair and make-up together. Win-win either way you look at it.

Looks like it's time.....

2008-12-14T17:37:00.003Z

Yesterday Erin and I were playing around, being silly, on the couch. Suddenly she stopped and said, "Mommy do this" and made a face trying to get her eyebrows to scrunch. I did the same. "No, mommy, like this" Now she opened her eyes VERY wide. I mimiced her facial expression. Exasperated no, "Mommy! like THIS, so you get this right here!" and she rubbed my forhead. She wanted me to raise my eyebrows, you know, so you get those lovely lines on your forehead? Ok, I gave in and did it.

"Mommy! You have old lady lumps! It's time to meet your maker now!"

Weeweechu

2008-12-12T14:25:00.003Z

It's a romantic full moon, when Pedro said, "Hey, mamacita, let's do Weeweechu."

Oh no, not now, let's look at the moon!" said Rosita.

Oh, c'mon baby, let's you and I do Weeweechu. I love you and it's the perfect time," Pedro begged.

"But I wanna just hold your hand and watch the moon." replied Rosita.

Please, corazoncita, just once, do Weeweechu with me."

Rosita looked at Pedro and said, "OK, one time, we'll do Weeweechu."

Pedro grabbed his guitar and they both sang.....

"Weeweechu a Merry Christmas, Weeweechu a Merry Christmas,

Weeweechu a Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year."

I couldn't resist. They are so damn cute!

Ramona Quimby; Self Portrait

2008-12-12T02:15:00.002Z

For those of you who remember the books by Beverly Cleary, you will remember Ramona Quimby. The lovable, if somewhat impossible little girl who was the younger sister of Beezus (who names their kid Beezus?) and the apple of everyone's eye for being just so stinking cute. Ramona had a doll named Chevrolette. Yes, that is a car, but Ramona thought is was a beautiful word to be wasted as a car so she made it a name. Ramona liked to play with a little boy named Howie, even though other little girls only played with other girls. Girls played stupid things. Ramona once emptied out an entire tub of toothpaste just to see what would happen. Ramona got an adorable pixie hair cut. Ramona danced to the beat of her own drum. She was a lovable, loving, if somewhat exasperating child.

Haley is my Ramona.

She reminds me so often of this beloved character from my childhood, even more so since she has had her hair cut. I often call her Ramona and it infuriates her. I can't wait for her to be old enough to enjoy reading the Ramona stories with me. My two favorites were Ramona and her Mother, and of course, Ramona Quimby, age 8. If you haven't read them as a child, read them as an adult. They are a bit dated in some of the language (girls wore skirts, not pants. Ramona was a rebel, I tell you! No wonder I like her?) But the feeling of this girl holds true to my heart and will to yours as well. Read about Ramona. You will so easily be able to imagine her always trying to sneak off with her mother's camera and take her own picture making funny faces. Like my own little Ramona. In all these pictures I am sharing with you here.

She is going to absolutely HATE me when she is 13.

Past Due

2008-12-12T02:11:00.002Z

Here are finally the photos from Thanksgiving weekend. We cooked, shopped, ate, played and enjoyed. For further details, see earlier post of How Is It December?

"I-D-T-S"

2008-12-08T19:37:00.002Z

That's what Erin said. I told her she had to eat with no utensils if she didn't help empty the dishwasher. I-D-T-S, mom. Huh? "I don't think so" Yeah. Who taught her text-lingo? So it starts...... {sigh}. Gotta love technology.

Progress

2008-12-05T14:25:00.001Z

Progress

I had Erin's parent-teacher conference last night. How odd to be on the other side of the table it is for me? I am usually the one telling the parent all about their child, the one managing the time, controlling the conference. How weird to be the parent instead of the teacher? Certainly gives me new perspective and understanding for the parents I face each year.

As for Erin... she is continuing to do so very well in school. She has become an avid reader and devours anything she can get her hands on. She enjoys stories with "meat" to them and not just the "cutesy fluff" as her teacher said. From all of this reading, her writing has taken on new levels of expression and creativity. She tells stories with great detail and emotion. Her handwriting... well, she is preparing to be a doctor we could say! Erin's teacher has truly opened up the children to the wonders of the written word and established a love of learning. This little sponge of ours has been so fortunate to have her for a teacher.

Erin's Math skills, of course, are above your average 2nd grader. Mrs. Murawczk said to me, "I will take credit for her reading and writing, but you get credit at home for her Math skills." Ok, so having an accountant for a dad and a math teacher for a mom, we do a lot of math, it kind of sticks. What can I say, the kid is good. She has to be, our reputation is on the line here.

Of course, no conference is complete without the "We would like to see...." She talks a bit too much. She has a hard time waiting her turn. Trying to put a nice spin on it, the teacher tells me it is because she has so many wonderful life experiences she can't wait to share. It is because she is so very bright that she gets frustrated when others don't answer fast enough. She is MY child, of course she talks to much. She is IRA'S child, of course she is a bit disorganized. Genetics need to have a place on the report card as well....

Doesn't matter. We are so very proud of our 2nd grader. She may be a little crazy, talk all the time, misplace most of her school papers, and runs like she is on double espresso most of the time, but that's is what makes her our Erin.

A+

From the eyes of a child.....

2008-12-04T13:11:00.002Z

Driving home from some errands on Tuesday night, Haley was delighted to see the decorations people have begun to put out for the holidays. Then, we came upon the mecca of all holiday decorations... I swear this house made the Grizwalds look plain.

"Mommy! Can we bedazzle our house like THAT ONE!"

Where do kids get this stuff?

How is it December?

2008-12-03T13:53:00.004Z

I mean, It was just October last week? Thanksgiving was wonderful. We had such an incredible 4 day weekend! My aunt, Gloria, came to spend "American Thanksgiving" as she calls it, with us again this year. What a wonderful tradition that has become. Haley was most excited to see what color Aunt Gloria's hair was going to be! Apparently the red from last year made quite an impression on her. Well, her hair was a little more toned down this year, but Gloria looks fabulous! As always, it is just too short of a visit, but I look forward to having her every year.

We celebrated Bill's birthday last weekend with a full Krassan family dinner at Bucca di Beppo. We sat at the Pope table. Some Irony there. Surprised we didn't get hit by lightning or something?

Out Thanksgiving table this year was beautiful. Erin made the place cards out of little turkeys I cut out with my Cricut machine (scrapbooking tool of the GODS I tell you!). Having her write out the names was such a nice touch. Haley helped set the table and put the little leaf cut out place mats around. Ira, once again, made a most delicious Turkey. He may have missed his calling in life as a MASTER TURKEY CHEF! The girls each made a special dish for the meal. Haley made the traditional homemade cranberry sauce (that nobody ever eats but we make because it looks nice and is fun). It still was hardly touched. Everyone prefers Sandy's cranberry sauce with the pineapple rings, which has its own funny story for another post. Erin had a very special dish. She had gone to the local farm on a field trip a few weeks ago and picked the biggest sweet potatoes I have EVER SEEN! She picked them, washed them, peeled them, cut them, mixed them with butter and brown sugar and cinnamon and baked them. She arranged marshmallows on top to melt in the oven. What an amazing experience! Now, if she would only have EATEN them.... kids, sheesh.

Then, on to BLACK FRIDAY! I have to say, I was disappointed in myself this year. Every year, I am up and out of the house by 5:00 a.m. faithfully. I meet my mom for some crafting at Michael's or AC Moore, then we meet my dad and Ira with the girls for breakfast. This year, I don't know why.. the sales were not enticing.... I didn't have anything in particular to buy... I am on a limited budget after the addition on the house... I just didn't have my shopping mojo flowing. I slept through all the early madness and didn't go out until 9:00 for breakfast. I was a Black Friday slacker. I made my dear, neurotic friend Aubree get up and go shopping, but I slept. Even the year Haley was born, at 9 months pregnant, I got up, I shopped, and I gave birth the next day. {sigh} Don't know. Just wasn't feeling it. Blame the economy. When I did get out, I was sad to see that I didn't have to fight for a parking space, there were shopping carts available in stores that in previous years you had to stalk for one, and the lines were not long at all. It is a sad statement for the retailers when this most hallowed day of shopping festivities seems so, well, sad?

Saturday morning Ira and I were awakened by a little girl jumping on us yelling, "Get up you lazy bones, don't you know you have a 5 year old now?" Yup, it was Haley's birthday. She was all about being 5 at last. We took the girls into Philadelphia for messy cheesesteaks (chicken cheesesteaks at Tony Lukes that we eat in the car, a family favorite) and then to Ikea to get Erin and Haley a double desk for the new office at home. Saturday night we celebrated her fiveness with a family dinner. Table for 22 at Friendly's. Yeah. I don't think I need to explain that one. It was fun. Loud. Crazy. But fun. To top it all off, we had my sister's kids (Samantha, Jake and Deanna) all sleep over so Lynda could go out to celebrate her birthday as well. I don't think Lynda minds sharing her birthday with Haley, but somehow Friendly's wasn't exactly her type of celebration :o) So this gave her a chance to have a much deserved grown ups night out.

Now we have Ashley's birthday to look forward to this month. Erin has already asked me at least 400 times what Aunt Sue and Lindsay are planning for that occasion. Can't we get through one thing at a time?

When Sunday finally rolled around, it was raining and cold and we were all happy to spend a day doing something quiet and relaxing. SO what do I do? I take the girls and a friend for each of them to McDonald's for lunch (imagine the playroom there on a rainy Sunday?) and then to the movies to see Bolt. Yeah. Relaxing. Right. They were so cute, so good and had a tremendous amount of fun.

While I was gallivanting about town with a cart load of kids, Nancy and Phil were at home decorating the Christmas tree with Gloria, Robin and David. Now that Rachael was back to school, I figure the Schaffers were relaxing and having a good time being on their own again :o)

It was one of those "This is what being a mom is all about" days. I did enjoy it... mostly :o)

As if that wasn't enough... there was one more teensy little thing. We got a Guinea Pig. She is a hand-me-down, and, she is adorable. Erin's friend Rachael had her and couldn't keep her. So we got her. Her name is Miss Piggy and we love her. All of us. Except Ira. So far. But he didn't love Rufus for a long time either.... or Isabell.....now that I think of it. He has issues with pets. It is only a matter of time if you ask me...muahahahahaha!

It was an exhausting yet fulfilling weekend. Filled with family, filled with food, filled with love. How blessed we are to be able to share times like these not only with each other, but with our extended family. Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, cousins.... cousins home from college :o) My girls are surrounded by people who love them like nobodies business. It simply fills me with joy to see how them grow and flourish knowing that these people are a part of all the important events in their lives. Always a constant. Always there. They count on it. We have a tradition in my home on Thanksgiving. When we sit at the table, we each take a turn saying what we are thankful for. It is a little wishy-washy and we all say the same things each year. Health, family, all that. But it is important to say it out loud. Not take for granted those you hold closest to your heart. Those that mean the most to you. This weekend was certainly a busy one, and I know I went on and on and on like I sometimes can do, but there was a reason. I wanted to put into words all the things, or people I am thankful for. You see, they are each one a part of my weekend. Each and everyone of them was mentioned in here!

TOP TEN

2008-11-26T16:26:00.001Z

10 things you can only say at
Thanksgiving!

10. Talk about a huge breast!

9. Tying the legs together keeps the inside moist.

8. If I don't undo my pants, I'll burst!

7. That's one terrific spread!

6. It's a little dry, do you still want to eat It?

5. Just wait your turn, you'll get some!

4. Don't play with your meat.

3. I didn't expect everyone to come at once!

2. How long will it take after you stick it in?

and the Number #1 thing you can only say on Thanksgiving....

1. I'm in the mood for a little dark meat.

Be very careful......

2008-11-26T13:36:00.004Z

to listen to what people say to you. It is easy to misunderstand what they say. Take the poor tin man here. He was supposed to be the smart one.... he should have thought a little more carefully about what Dorothy was asking of him. It is easy to just respond to what someone says without thinking it through all the way. Sometimes I do that and it isn't always so good. Take time to really listen to people. Think first, act second. Its a pretty good rule to live by. After all, who wants to eat straw?

Sheee-eeee's Baaa-aaaack!

2008-11-17T19:32:00.003Z

So, we made the big move this weekend. Our little cramped home office upstairs is now in the beautiful big space downstairs that was once a garage. The only down-side? 2 days with no internet lol! How did I survive before this? To top it all off, I haven't been able to find my cell phone all weekend (turned up in a coat pocket this morning, so all is well). Which all leads me to this... How much technology is good for us? I mean, I grew up with no computer, no cell phone, no internet once we did get a computer, and the TV I had as a kid, you had to get up to change the channels, all 6 of them! I know, I sound like that old guy on the car-sense commercials... "We had to go find cars the old way, kicking tires, cup of Joe and days on end.." But you see what I mean. I have to admit, it was kind of cool having a tech-free weekend. I had to run out to do some errands, I had no phone, so I paid attention to what I was doing. My errands ended up being quicker. Lack of technology made me MORE efficient, it seems. The running around that would have ended up being the whole afternoon? Back in an hour. I couldn't keep calling to see if we needed that. I couldn't just run to a few other places because Ira could call if he was looking for me. I told him I would be back at a certain time and I needed to be back as reasonably close to that time as I could. No excuses. Could it be that all those things that are meant to be time savers and helpers are really inhibitors? When you don't have them at your constant disposal, it makes a world of difference. I was able to accomplish so much more, honestly! I am thinking, I just may start leaving my cell phone at home on the weekends from now on. It works a lot better than any other time management tool I have ever had.

Dirty Little Secret

2008-11-14T16:02:00.002Z

Ok, here it goes.... I. Don't. Finish. Things. There, I said it. It doesn't feel any better. It isn't like I don't admit it. I do. I even call myself the Queen of Unfinished Projects. I am sure you have noticed that I started out with a bang, posting every night, faithfully, right on time, like I said I would. Then, this week... well.. not so much. I could even give you some fabulous excuses. Last night we took my computer down and unplugged everything so that we could move my desk into the new office. Sure, that could be an excuse. But I could have done my entry earlier. I could have blogged from Ira's computer. So it is just that, an excuse. I am not a whiner, so I wont' go there. I just didn't do it. I am fading. I have a tendency to do that. I start something all gung-ho and then... well, the momentum fades just a little. It certainly isn't intentional. It is my biggest weakness. I am trying to work on it. Admission is the first step, right? Think there is a program for this problem? Probably not. Any of you have this same particular dirty little secret? Let me know. Misery loves company. Some day, I will set a goal and complete it. Someday. Maybe that can be the first goal Start and complete one thing. Now, back to the list of unfinished projects, cheer me on people, I could use a little encouragement!

Bad Blogger!

2008-11-13T02:49:00.002Z

Bad, Bad, Blogger! Did I not post yesterday? Are you sure? I thought I posted yesterday? Where did the time go? What exactly did I do yesterday? Where did yesterday go? What about today? What the hell happened to today? How does this happen! It isn't like I was busy or anything? I didn't even cook dinner the last few nights, we went out? Where does time go? This is my life. Things get in the way. The best intentions.. all those cliches. I just don't understand how it happens. It seems as though all I did today after work was read the mail, grab a bite for dinner, pajamas, tuck kids in, and it is almost 10:00. Hmph. I think I have to learn a little time management or organization or something. There has to be a better way to make it through the week?

2008-11-10T17:34:00.004Z

This is what happens to me when I turn on the computer. There is no such thing as "Just checking my email" or any such nonsense. At least I am honest. "My name is Michelle and I am addicted to the Internet." I do not call the computer a time saver, a useful tool, an organizational device. I call it what it is; A vacuum of time that sucks the minutes out of my day by pulling me away from the 1,000 other things my time should be spent accomplishing. Instead, I am aimlessly wandering and getting lost on the world wide web. Sure it is convenient to be able to find anything I want. Problem is, once I quickly (insert snort of sarcasm here) find what I need, I am so easily swayed to click on every other link that the time saved using the Internet rather than going to an actual store is quickly lost. When I look at one simple site for, oh let us just say, a new coffee pot, I end up going from the coffee pot, to a site that has the best price on the coffee. That site leads me to a place that has these really cool mugs that match the new paint in the kitchen. The mugs lead me to a site that has these other kitchen appliances that all coordinate. From there I am in a chat room about recipes for the upcoming holidays. (Because I need to read all the wonderful things I won't make because I always make the same traditional things every year.. but juuuust in case....) now heading to a site on kids in the kitchen (just for the stories, I don't actually let my kids in the kitchen, or cook for that matter) heading on over to a site making house crafts from kitchen materials. (Did you ever know all the fascinating uses of cling wrap, flour and water?) clicking to some crafting stuff. (Now we're talking, baby!) That has me at this blog written by a lady in Kalamazoo that quit her job to live on only recycled materials. (They are called "fregans, like vegans, but they eat from dumpsters only food they find or get from free! Really, do a google search on it! I dare you!) and she does this because the world is filling up with trash so fast we will all have to live on another planet soon because we throw away perfectly good things. I am now prompted to go look at information on the environment. Gee, look at the ad on the side for a whale watching excursion? I bet that would be fun? Check out the travel site this is linked too... See what I mean? Looking for a coffee pot and I end up on a whale watching excursion in Alaska. Logical, huh?

Weekend photos

2008-11-10T14:39:00.002Z

Not a full post, just pictures of what we did this weekend.

First slide show is our trip to Inner Harbor with a pit stop to see Rachael at Towson. Second batch is Erin & Haley's joint kid birthday party (and the mess I made baking cupcakes!) as well as family dinner afterwards.

What was I thinking?

2008-11-10T02:21:00.002Z

Ok, remember when I got this great idea to do 32 posts in 32 days..... with pictures? I had this great idea that I wanted to let my kids know a little about me at this time in my life. I had this idea that I could chronicle a month of day-to-day life, throw it all together, and create a scrapbook that would be a perfect way to show them what their mom was like at age 36? Me, as a person, rather than as the "mom". Remember that first post about how I love making their birthday cakes? How I want them to remember that I always did that? Remember all the nostalgia there? Go back and reread that post. Then come here and read this. WHAT WAS I THINKING? Why in God's Green EARTH am I spending most of a Saturday night and then the better part of a Sunday morning making 2 small round cakes surrounded by a million differently colored frosted cupcakes on cute trays with coordinating sparkling sprinkles? Yeah, they are adorable and yummy. Yeah, nothing is as tempting as a cupcake, if you ask me. But there are some pretty good bakeries around here. After the $14,000 I spent on cake mix, butter cream frosting ingredients (11 pounds of butter, 92 pounds of powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon milk) and then the colored gel to dye it, the sprinkles, the gizmos and gadgets to make all the swirls and such in the frosting just so, What the hell is wrong with me? Here is what my kitchen counter looked like after. You can't even see the eleven bowls in the sink along with the 47 spoons, scrapers, pans, and assorted measuring devices. Next year, we are doing the Acme sheet cake with fancy plastic princess figurines. I will still sprinkle the edible glitter on it. Yeah, that is a nice touch. I can even take it out of the box and put it on one of my own trays. Maybe I will write their names in my own hand writing. That could fool them. If they doubt I love them, I will just get they a pony or something.

2 pictures for 2 days

2008-11-09T01:37:00.004Z

We took the girls to Inner Harbor in Maryland yesterday for an overnight family getaway. It was pretty cool. On the way down, we stopped at Towson University to see my niece Rachael (and relive our college days... somehow I don't recall dorms being that small?) From there, we headed to our hotel to check in, then across the street to the Baltimore Science Museum. It is just an incredible place to spend a day. We followed the life cycle of the blue crab, dug for fossils, built with kinex, explored, investigated, researched.... AWESOME! They had activities that showed kids basic principals of gravity, how pulleys work, leverage, electricity, the kids were completely into it! You would have thought they were discovering some of these basic principals of science themselves. So, to round out all that good learning, we went to the imax movie and saw Madagascar II and pigged out on popcorn and Mike & Ikes. Nice way to re-mush the mind a little :o)
Day two brought us to the National Aquarium. Ira and I had visited here when we were in college, so it was exciting to come back with children. We saw the dolphin show (always a favorite) then toured all the exhibits. Not too exciting for Erin & Haley since we have a salt water tank at home and they "know" all this already... silly mommy and daddy! So that wasn't a winner, but the ice cream afterwards was a home run, so it balanced the day.

The best part of the trip, you ask? 2 days together. 2 days just spending time laughing, being goofy, torturing, eating ice cream, kissing somebody whenever the mood strikes, just good family time. There is nothing like it. Family time. Work, chores, stress, all the responsibilities of every day life tend to get in the way. Family Time. Capital letters, you see. It is that important. No matter what, you have to stop, spend time with those most important in your world. Real time. Time away from everybody else. Time at home is ok, but you have to get away from the phone, errands to run, all of it. You don't have to go out of town, but you have to go someplace that you are away from your "life", you know? This family of mine, I love them. Love them like nobody's business. Family Time. Yeah. The where is fun, but the Family Time. That's what it's all about.

Hubert

2008-11-07T03:49:00.000Z

What made me laugh today.

2008-11-07T03:30:00.004Z

It was a rubber chicken. $1.99 Rubber chicken. It was a dog toy, once upon a time. Actually, about 2 hours ago. It didn't last very long, but I would still say I got my money's worth. It went kind of like this.

Picture Haley and me running a bunch of errands today. We decided to take the dogs with us. If they were going to just sit in their crate and be lonely, they may as well just sit in the car and keep us company. They do so enjoy barking at all the passers by in the parking lot. Michael's, Old Navy, Bertucci's... Izzy sat in the front with me, Rufus in the back with Haley. We made it to Ulta, stopped at Chick Fil-a for a drink. They were so good, we took them to Pet Smart to pick out some new toys and treats. You see, I love my dogs. I mean I love them like one of those crazy dog people. I AM one of those crazy dog people. I even got them matching his-and-hers hooded sweat shirts for chilly fall days. They wear them to go running with Ira. They like them. I have issues, I know. But I digress, back to Pet Smart. We wander the toy department, Haley, the dogs and I, picking out the perfect rubber chewies. In the past, I found the most indestructible $10 toys that would last about 4 days. Time for a new tactic. I chose the $2 flimsy toy that would last about 3 minutes. I figure I pay about that much for really good bones, and they don't last much longer.

When we got home, the dogs got their little rubber chicken after dinner. He was very cute. I named him Hubert and we said a little prayer over the sacrificial chicken before giving him to the hounds of hell. They each loved just carrying little Hubert around. He made the most adorable little squeaky sounds. I think my mistake was in buying only one chicken. Had there been two... perhaps a Herbert to help divert all attention away from Hubert...

What made me laugh today was this. Ira came home from work late. I was upstairs watching TV. He called out, "Can anyone tell me why the dog is running around with a decapitated chicken in her mouth?" How exactly does one even answer that?
So I just had to laugh.
Rest in peace, Hubert.

Did you?

2008-11-06T04:21:00.005Z

Waking up today, there was a new President Elect, it was very exciting. At school, the kids all came in chanting "Obama!" and it was so cool to see these 12, 13 and 14 year olds all hyped up about POLITICS! It is a very exciting time in our lives to be a part of this election. I am not saying which way I voted, Democrat, Republican, whatever... just the act of walking in to that booth, looking at the choices before me. Knowing that each of us has the privilege, the responsibility, the power to make that decision and influence the outcome. It overwhelms me. I think of other places in this world that people are controlled by their government. Not here. Not me. So today, I am just relishing in the fact that I VOTED. I went and let my opinion on who should be the president of the United States of America be counted. Win or lose, my candidate got my vote. My voice was heard. It wasn't that many years ago that women didn't have the right to vote. Not at all. I don't take that right for granted. Now, look who is president. Now that is something you don't see every day.

Life is Good

2008-11-05T00:52:00.002Z

I found this tag this morning when I was hunting through my closet looking for something to wear. It is from my favorite pair of flannel pajama pants. Pink with white daisies. When I bought the pants a few years ago, for a scrapping get away of course, I must have just tossed the tag on the closet shelf with the intention of including it on a scrap page. {Of course I did, that sounds so "me" doesn't it?} Little did I know that Life is Good would become more than a cozy pair of pants to me. It is kind of my personal mantra. When the kids are on my nerves, Life is Good reminds me how fortunate I am to have these kids to bug me. When I am tired at the end of a long day, I think how fortunate I am to have worked hard to be tired. When I go to put on my favorite jeans to walk the dogs, go to the park with the family, the movies with Ira, just run errands on the weekend, I think, yeah, life is pretty good. Do What You Like. Like What You Do. The guys that came up with this stuff knew what they were talking about. Who knew a pair of pajama pants would turn out to give me my outlook of life? Good thing they are comfortable.

Pure Joy

2008-11-04T02:17:00.002Z

...is coming home to see this beautiful sight, on any given standard business day, that is. Aaahhh, a package.... is there any sight so sweet? Any other sight that can lift one's heart? bring a smile at the end of a weary work day? It doesn't really matter what the contents are. We order coffee in bulk, dog treats, gadgets and gizmos, house hold supplies, office things, computer parts, a mop, some books, holiday gifts for the kids, clothes, all sorts of things. Each and every one gives me pleasure when it waits on my porch for me at the end of the day. Today though, oh sweet joy, today.... SCRAPBOOK SUPPLIES! It was not my beloved scrapbook obsessions kit (I would have been stalking the mail carrier for that), No, today was forbidden purchases from some random scrapping website. Papers and stickers and doodads and things that just make me so happy to open up and run my fingers over. (must be some glitter involved, I do so very much love all things that bling). As I sit here typing, they are right next to me, making me smile. No, there is nothing that makes it any sweeter to come home after a long day than to see that beautiful brown box sitting on the front porch.... waiting... with my own name in neat black letters on the front.

So, there's this guy I know....

2008-11-03T01:46:00.003Z

..... OK, so it's my husband. (Ira, stop reading now, I don't want you to hear this! I mean it!)
He is just perfect, for me, at least. Yeah, we argue and disagree, and he makes me crazy, but it works. Last night we took my parents out for dinner. In the car we were talking about a color of paint for the office we are doing, and my dad said, "Stop arguing!" We both said "We aren't arguing?" what was he even talking about? As opposite as we are, as different as the things we like, when it comes down to it we just work. This picture here, is from the summer. We drove down to North Carolina with the girls for his cousin's wedding. On the way home, the kids fell asleep and Ira ended up trying to avoid bad traffic ahead his dad had called to warn us about. We ended up driving through Washington DC at midnight..... NOT on our plans. There was me, taking pictures out the windows as we passed the capitol, him pointing out landmarks, and both of us just laughing at the fact that we were so totally lost. So what did I do? I leaned over and took our picture together. Nearly blinding the driver, of course. We laughed even harder. How many guys would even begin to understand that their wife needed to document this moment to scrapbook? How many husbands would think to point out the white house at 80 mph so I could try to catch a snapshot? It just got funnier by the second. Ira gets me. He doesn't expect me to change. Even the parts that aren't always the best. He just keeps on loving me. How cool is that?

Happy Birthday!

2008-11-02T03:42:00.002Z

To my parents, Phil and Nancy! Every year Ira and I take them out to celebrate their birthdays. Since they are only 4 days apart, it is easy to share the night, except this year their busy social calendar kept us from getting a date until almost 2 weeks after the big days. What's that all about? Being all grown up, it is a great pleasure to be able to just enjoy the company of my parents. We can talk, relax, and it is always a good time. I don't think that 20 years ago I would have believed you if you told me that one day a great Saturday night would be going out with the parental units. Perspective of the young, I suppose. Now I know that nights like this are the ones I treasure. Year after year, Phil and Nancy just get better :o)
Love you, mom & dad!

Spoooooky!

2008-11-01T00:39:00.003Z

We had a "cheerless cheerleader" who wore black lipstick and pouted and a "scary beautiful princess witch" which is pretty self explanatory. Haley is still into the cutesy costumes, but Erin, as you can see, is moving into the more grown up idea of Halloween. I am not so sure I like that. I love all the make up and hair, and yes, I am THAT MOM that sprayed my hair to go out with the kids. Erin was disappointed that I didn't have a costume. After I finished doing her hair, I took the cans to mine and went a little crazy. I can't say it was a costume, but it was festive, and it made the girls happy. Isn't that what it is all about? Well, that and the candy :o)